


The Avengers of The Fallen

by kayla49



Series: Marvel Avengers Series [2]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Avengers: Age of Ultron (Movie), Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie), Captain America: Civil War (Movie), Captain America: The First Avenger, Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Civil War (Marvel), F/M, Infinity War (Marvel Comics), Marvel Universe, Minor Original Character(s), Post-Avengers (2012), Winter Soldier Bucky Barnes
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-04
Updated: 2021-01-18
Packaged: 2021-03-10 19:07:49
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 27
Words: 37,924
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28422186
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kayla49/pseuds/kayla49
Summary: Remember how I said life should be easy? Well, it still isn't. Especially when the past comes back to bite you in the ass.
Relationships: James "Bucky" Barnes & Reader, James "Bucky" Barnes/Reader
Series: Marvel Avengers Series [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2081745
Kudos: 7





	1. Prologue

Even though life has changed now that time has moved on; some of us are still frozen. Never moving from our natural state of mind. We all think as we grow older that time means everything. Then at some point, time doesn't matter anymore. It all turns into work, work, work, work, and hopefully at the end of the day, we have something or someone to come home too.

We all hope that one thing or that someone will make our whole day just vanish, no matter how crappy it was.

But somehow, I forgot all about the day when I became a monster.


	2. The Disappearence

"Why don't you go on a date with him? He checks you out every time we walk into the building." Nat commented through the comm. I looked away from the scope and blinked a few times to clear the tiredness out of them.

We both have been on this mission for weeks, waiting for our target to come out of his spider hole. Reaching up with one hand, I wiped away the sweat that was dripping down my forehead. It was hot in Feijo, a small town in the Brazilian state of Arce.

"Nat, we talked about this." I muttered into the comm.

"No, you talked about it. I just listened like I normally do." Nat replied. Moving my gun slightly, I looked down through the scope and saw that she was already staring at me from her spot at the cafe. She lifted her cup to her lips but I could see the smirk hidden behind the cup.

"All you do is listen." I mumbled back, rolling my eyes as I moved the scope back to the warehouse that was right across the street from the building I was currently standing on, baking in the heat.

"He's quite a beautiful man. He's an accountant, good with numbers, possibly good somewhere else if you know what I mean." She hinted.

"Nat." I warned her.

"Sorry, sorry. I know you don't wanna talk about this," She quickly uttered as I heard her sip from her cup again. "You can tell me that you're a virgin, I wouldn't be surprised."

"Not about that, he's coming out." I quickly told her, ignoring the last thing she said. Our target shut the door to his spider hole and started to walk down the street. "You got eyes?"

"I got eyes," She reported back. "What's the plan?"

"Well, I can shoot him now while I still have him in sight but there are too many people to get in the way and too many witnesses. Or option two, tail him until he gets somewhere a little more deserted, less witnesses." I quickly rattled off as I moved my gun to follow him down the street.

"I'll tail since I'm already on the ground while you get down and tail from the other side of the street." She chose and I lowered my gun, quickly taking off the scope and sliding it into the bag that was by my feet.

Picking up the bag, I slid the gun in the small of my back, tucking it into my waistband. I reached up and pressed my hand to the comm. "Coming down, you got him?"

"A few feet behind. Looks like he's heading out of the main crowd. You down?" She asked. I glanced to the side as I finished climbing down the latter on the side of the building.

"Following across." I answered back as I weaved around a few people so I could be walking diagonal from our target. When I turned to watch where I was going, I slammed into someone. "Sorry."

The man nodded his head before saying something in Spanish but I didn't quite understand what he was saying. He tapped me on my shoulder as he walked away, with me checking where he touched for bugs.

_"Never trust anyone, Красного, not even yourself."_

I shook my head as I heard the woman's voice in my head. After all these months after the fight in New York, I always hear her voice but I can never place how or who this woman was.

"He's walking into a warehouse to the left of you." Nat's voice snapped me back to reality as I saw that he was doing what Nat had just warned me of.

Going around the back, I shoved the back door open and quietly stepped inside. Reaching up to my ear, I pressed on the comm. "I'm around the back, coming around to the front."

All I heard was static. "Nat?" Still static.

"Damn it." I muttered as I moved closer to the front of the warehouse. Hearing voices coming from in front of me, I pulled my gun out of my thigh holster and held it out in front of me as I walked closer to them.

"Nothing fatal, understood?" A man's voice echoed in the warehouse. Hearing a lot of responses after, I glanced behind the wall I was standing behind to see a group of men in a circle. 

The image of the little girl from two years ago flashed behind my eyes. Her cries for her father had me shaking my head to rid myself of that memory.

"Hello, little dove." I heard in my ear before something smashed over the back of my head before blackness fell over.

* * *

Groaning as the pounding in my head increased as my eyes slowly flickered open. They were blurry at first before they focused on the man who was sitting in front of me in a chair.

"Hello, little dove." He muttered and I jerked my hands to find that they were tied behind me to a post. "No, no, no. Don't do that. Wouldn't want you to hurt yourself too much."

"What do you want?" I hissed as I jerked my hands once more before giving up on trying to release them.

"What do I want? Hmm, I want our little Красного back. She was one of our greatest accomplishments until you decided to resurface inside her." He hissed at me.

Красного.

Where have I heard that before? Where?

I frowned as I tried to remember who called me that before. Shaking my head, I shoved the memory of something I didn't do back deep inside my brain. Wait.

Sitwell. He's called that before. Why would he call me that?

"Ahh, you're remembering something of her past life, aren't you? Wonderful, isn't it? A look inside of what she had seen, what she has done. Beautiful, isn't it?" He smirked as he leaned closer, his elbows on his knees.

"I don't know what you're talking about. I'm not the woman you think I am." I muttered as a drip of sweat slipped down my face as I tried to suppress the unpleasant memories of the unknown.

"Let's find out, shall we?" He reached behind him and pulled out a little black book with a red star on it. "Look familiar to you? Your little buddy has one just like this, but it was red."

Shaking my head, my fingers twitched, hitting something. Curling my fingers around it, I slid the knife out of its holster in the back of my pants. Sliding the blade back and forth on the ropes as the man in front of me flipped through the pages in the book.

"Ahh, here we go." He muttered to himself and I shoved the knife faster against the rope. "One. Relinquished."

My head snapped over to the side away from him as the first two words did something to me. 

"Nine, dawns, coming." I hissed as the man with the metal arm filled my head; feeling the rope behind me fall slack. My head snapped back and the man's hand grabbed onto my face and made me look at him. "Two, subservient, one, denouement."

I closed my eyes as my mind went slightly blank. "Soldier."

I heard him get up off the chair and fabric moving in front of me. His hand again touched my face as I felt his breathe on me. "Soldier?"

My eyes snapped open and I slammed my head into his. He fell back with a groaning, holding his nose. Quickly getting up, I grabbed the gun that went flying out of his pocket. Aiming it at his head, he watched me with a scared look on his face. "Красного?"

"I'm not her." I hissed before shooting him. Glancing down, I saw the black book. The door slamming open had me turning and aiming the gun at the door. 

"Grace?" Nat's voice reached me before I saw her. "She has been located. I repeat, she has been located."

She came over to me cautiously as I still had the gun aimed at her chest. "Grae, it's me. Nat." She reached up and slowly lowered the gun. "It's okay. You're okay."


	3. The Suspicious

"How many times do I have to say this?" I hissed as I almost started to rip my own hair out. "I don't know what happened."

Rumlow grunted and shoved himself away from the table. "You don't know what happened?" He asked again as he walked behind me as he folded his arms across his chest.

"Yes." I muttered out, my lips pursing in anger. His palms slammed down on the table causing me to flinch slightly. He bent his head closer to mine as he glared at me.

"You go missing from your mission in Brazil and we find you three days later during our mission in Sokovia with a terrorist group. Do you know how that makes you look?" He mumbled out as he moved back to his chair across from mine.

"Yeah, it looks bad. I have no idea what happened in those three days. All I know is this man, this terrorist, was trying to bring something out in me, which is crazy. He was delusional if you ask me." I responded in anger.

He looked a little taken back once I finished. "What did he say to you?" Was all he asked.

"He said these weird things. It wasn't even a real sentence if you ask me." Was all I said. 

"What exactly did he say?"

"I don't remember. Can I go now or are you going to keep me here for more useless questioning?" I glared at him as he did back. The door next to us opened and we both didn't break our stare from each other.

"Rumlow, they cleared her." One of the STRIKE team members said.

"Would you look at that." A hint of sarcasm came out as I spoke. I shoved myself up and stormed out, feeling his glare on my back.

Slamming the apartment door, I leaned my back against it. The object in the back of my jeans stuck out as it poked my hip again. Reaching back, I pulled out the little black book I had picked up once I noticed it laying on the floor of the warehouse. Hiding it was a bitch since it was the size of a notebook.

Setting a track in the record player, I played it as I saw down on my couch. The front of the book was a faded black now that I was observing it. The little red star had some fading and chippings around the edges. 

_"Your little buddy has one just like it."_

The man's voice echoed in my ears. Shaking my head, I opened the cover and saw that the writing was in cursive. Flipping through the pages, I saw that the writing was also in Russian. Only knowing a little Russian, I could only make out just a little. My eyebrows came together as the words of torture came up off the page. My head jerked to the side as a knock came from the front door.

Closing the book, I slid it under the cushions before getting up and walking towards the door. Looking through the peephole, I saw Steve leaning against the frame with his hand. Jerking open the door, he instantly pulled me into a hug. 

"I just heard, you okay?" He whispered into my ear as his arms tightened. 

"Yeah, I'm fine." I whispered as I returned the hug.

"You sure? You had me pretty worried when Nat told me you suddenly disappeared in Brazil." Steve asked as he pulled away to look me in the eye.

I reached up and brushed my greasy hair out of my face. "Um, yeah. Um...I think I just need some sleep. Uh...." I trailed off and he nodded.

"I understand. I'm next door if you need me, okay?" I nodded and he gave me one last hug before walking to his door. He turned to me before walking inside.

Closing my door, I walked to my bed and laid down. All I could think about was that book in the sitting room. Closing my eyes, I thought I could hear the screams of torture coming from the book.


	4. The Lost or the Broken

The sun was starting to come up when Steve yanked me from my bed for our normal morning run. We started it up when we got to Washington D.C. so we can have a bit of normalcy here. I set my watch and he started one way as I started the other. As I rounded the corner of one building, I saw him coming close to a lone man also running.

"On your left." Steve huffed as he raced past the man at the same time I ran past them. Glancing at my watch, I pumped my arms faster to make sure I stayed even with Steve's stride even though we went in different direction but the same course. 

Running past another monument in D.C., I saw the same man in front of me; with Steve not far behind him. "On your left." Steve huffed again as he ran past the man. I snickered slightly as I heard the man's reaction.

"Uh huh. On my left, got it." The man uttered as he caught sight of me passing him again.

"On your right." I smirked as I ran past him, glancing again at my watch as I passed another monument.

Again, after a couple minutes, I met up with the same man and so did Steve. The man gave a side glances as Steve caught up from behind him. "Don't say it. Don't you say it." The man demanded as he tried to speed up his pace.

"On your left." Steve muttered again as he flew right past him. 

"Come on!" The man yelled, annoyed. I laughed causing him to stare at me as I went past him again.

Slowing down to a walk as I caught site of Steve leaning against a tree, checking his watch. "How much?" I asked as I came to a stop next to him, checking my own watch again.

"Beat you by about fifteen seconds." He answered, quite proud of himself. I hit him with the back of my hand across his chest while smiling. 

"Come on." I shoved him along when I saw that guy Steve was teasing. He was sitting at the base of a tree, holding his stomach. Most likely out of breath trying to keep up with us.

"Need a medic?" Steve joked as he also noticed him. The man looked up and laughed as he saw us standing next to him.

"I need a new set of lungs." He breathlessly said. "Dude, you two just ran like thirteen miles in thirty minutes."

"Guess we're getting old in our old age." I joked and Steve gave me a side smile.

"Guess we got a late start." He added causing the man to chuckle.

"Oh, really? You should be ashamed of yourself. You should take another lap." He hesitated for a moment. "Did you just take it? I assume you just took it."

"What unit you with?" I asked, pointing to the symbol that I recognized on his shirt.

"58th Pararescue but now I'm working down at the VA. Sam Wilson." He raised his hand and Steve helped him to his feet.

"Steve Rogers, my partner Grace Donovan." Steve nodded towards me as he let go of Sam's hand.

"I kind of put that together," Sam pointed out. "Must have freaked you out coming home after the whole..."

"Well, Grace had an extra year than I did to adjust but it takes some getting used to." He sighed as he gestured to me again. "It's good meeting you, Sam." Steve placed a hand on my back as we went to walk away.

"It's your bed, right?" We both turned back to Sam as he spoke again.

"What's that?"

"Your bed, it's too soft. When I was over there, I'd sleep on the ground and use rocks for pillows, like a caveman. Now I'm home, lying in my bed and it's like..." He trailed off, losing his train of thought.

"Like lying on a marshmallow. Feel like you're gonna sink right to the floor." I finished for him, remembering that same feeling. Sam nodded, giving a small smile.

"How long?" Steve asks. 

"Two tours. You two must miss the good old days, huh?" Sam asked as he looked between the two of us. He cross his arms as a few memories had me quickly responding.

"Some things weren't so bad." Like Bucky. I frowned and stared down at my shoes. I could feel Steve's stare on me as he knew what I was talking about.

"Well, food's a lot better, we used to boil everything. No polio is good. Internet, so helpful. I've been reading that a lot trying to catch up." Steve took over as he probably noticed that I wasn't going to continue.

"Marvin Gaye, 1972. 'Trouble Man' soundtrack. Everything you've missed jammed into one album." Sam suggested.

"I'll put it on the list." Oh god, the list. I swear I'm gonna burn that thing once I get my hands on it. Steve pulls out the item in question and wrote it underneath everything else people have mentioned to him. My phone dinged in my pocket and I heard Steve's do the same. We both pulled them out at the same time.

'Mission Alert. Extraction imminent. Meet at the curb. :)

Nat'

"Alright, Sam, duty calls. Thanks for the run." I mumbled as I tucked my phone back into my running shorts.

"If that's what you want to call running." Steve joked as he shook Sam's hand. 

I moved towards the curb, not hearing what they were now talking about as an engine roar, a sleek black car pulling up next to me with the window rolling down.

"Hey, fellas." Nat's voice reached me from inside the car. "Either one of you know where the Smithsonian is. I'm here to pick up a few fossils." She joked as she stared at the two of us.

"Ha ha, very funny." I commented as I opened the door, climbing into the back seat. Sam kneels and gave an appreciative look to Nat and her car.

"How you doin?" He asked.

"Hey." Nat replied, her smirk gracing her face. I rolled my eyes at her.

Steve got in and shut the door, turning back to Sam, smiling. "Can't run everywhere."

"No, you can't."

* * *

Glancing over the pilot's shoulder, I saw that we were currently flying over the Indian Ocean as I heard Rumlow speaking behind me. "Target is a mobile satellite launch platform; The Lemurian Star. They were sending up their last payload when pirates took them, 93 minutes ago."

"Any demands?" Steve asked as he messed with the sleeve of his new stealth suit. I turned to look at him causing him to glance at me. 

"Billion and a half." Rumlow answered.

"Why so steep?" I asked, curious. Rumlow turned to me, glancing down at my own stealth suit, which enabled me to hide in plain sight.

"Because it's S.H.I.E.L.D.'s." He answered.

"So, it's not off-course, it's trespassing." Steve stated, glancing down at me.

"I'm sure they have a good reason." Nat jokes, I wandered over next to Steve as she turned to observe me.

"You know, I'm getting a little tired of Fury's janitor." Steve mentioned, annoyance laced in his voice.

"Relax. It's not that complicated." I whispered as I rubbed a finger down his arm. 

"How many pirates?" Steve asked, his eyes flickering to Rumlow.

"Twenty-five, top mercs, led by this guy. Georges Batroc." Rumlow pulls up a photo of Batroc on the monitor. "Ex-DGSE, Action Division. He's at the top of Interpol's Red Notice. Before the French demobilized him, he had thirty-six kill missions. This guy got a rep for maximum casualties."

"Hostages?" Steve continued.

"Uh...mostly techs. One officer, Jasper Sitwell." He then pulls Sitwell's photo. "They're in the galley."

"What's Sitwell doing on a launch ship?" I whispered and I guess Steve heard me because he glanced down at me, his eyebrows scrunched together.

"Alright, I'm gonna sweep the deck and find Batroc. Nat, you'll kill the engines and wait for instructions. Rumlow, you sweep aft, find the hostages. Get them to the life-pods, get them out. And Grace," He paused, turning back to me. I raised an eyebrow, waiting. "Don't do anything stupid, please. Let's move."

"STRIKE, you heard the Cap. Gear up." Rumlow ordered. 

"How can I do anything stupid when you're taking all of it with you?" I mumbled and he quickly tensed once I finished. "Steve, I was joking."

"I know." He mumbled back. He pulls up his wrist and spoke into the communicator there. "Secure channel seven."

"Seven secure. Did you do anything fun Saturday night?" Nat asked as she stopped next to him.

"Well, all the guys from my barbershop quartet are dead so...no, not really." Steve answered, smirking.

"Coming up on the drop zone, Cap." The pilot said over his shoulder. Steve hit the button for the ramp to open and turned back to Nat.

"You know if you ask Kristen out, from Statistics, she'd probably say yes." Nat told him.

"That's why I don't ask." Steve answered. 

"Too shy or too scared?" Nat pushed.

Steve yanked on his helmet as he moved closer to the opening. "Too busy." And with that, he jumped out with me quickly following.

The wind hurt my face as I came closer to the water. Moving into a pencil position, my feet hit the water first. Moving my arms out, I swam to the surface and climbed up the side of the boat. Droplets of water from my hair hit the deck as I shook off some water.

Sneaking up on one of the guards, I reached up and twisted his neck. His body went down hard and the other three turned towards me, raising their guns. I raised my arms, playing along. "Come on, boys. You wouldn't hurt a woman, would you?"

After I finished speaking, they fired at me which I quickly ran behind a pile of pallets. "Guess you would." Grabbing three knives, I came up. They all went down and I walked towards them, yanking my knives out of their necks. "Pathetic."

"What about the nurse that lives across from the hall from you and Grace?" Nat's voice came through the comm.

"Secure the engine room, then find me a date." Steve reminded her of the mission.

"I'm multitasking. Maybe you can help find one for Grace." Nat responded. I reached up, turning off my responder, not wanting to hear what she was going to say.

"Petite fille." I stopped in my tracks as I heard the accented voice behind me. Turning around, I saw six guards standing there.

"Really, petite fille? If you haven't noticed your friends, I'm not just a little girl." I commented, annoyed. The one in front started to come up at me with his fists raised. I rolled my eyes and he started to swing.

I ducked and kicked him in the knee. His knee went out and landing on it. Grabbing his hair, I punched at the second guy and he slammed into the next. Stepping up on the guy's knee, I wrapped my leg around his neck as he grabbed onto it and stood up.

He tried punching my side and I flipped myself, kicking two more as I came to a rest on my feet. Spinning, I kicked the same one in the face and he went down. The last three came at me with their fists raised and I pulled out one of my knives.

Twisting underneath an arm, I sliced the man's stomach and blood spattered on my face. Hopping back from a fist coming at my face, I twisted my knife up, slamming it up and into the man's arm. He let out a yell as I yanked it out, kicking him away and into a fire extinguisher.

Then before I could locate the last male, something rammed into my back. The side of my head bounced off the wall as I was forced around, an arm pressed against my throat. I started to laugh as blood slightly poured out of the cut inside my mouth.

"What is so funny?" He hissed, his accent becoming thicker. I smirked as I felt blood drip down from my brow also.

"You thinking you defeated me." I whispered as I pulled out another knife, jamming it into his throat. Yanking it out, he started to choke as blood overwhelmed his throat. Letting me go, he tried to cover his neck as he started to walk backwards. Moving towards him, I kicked him in the chest, him going over the railing. The splash from the water satisfied me.

Stepping back, I heard a crunch. My eyes shot down as I lifted my foot. "Fuck." I cursed as I realized what I just stepped on. Reaching down, I grabbed my broken comm as a loud explosion erupted from above.

Walking backward, I saw smoke coming out of a few broken windows then a door slammed opened, drawing my attention. Batroc came running, slamming to me. My back thumped onto the ground as he kept running. Steve came right after a few moments later, noticing me on the ground.

"Why the hell weren't you responding?" He demanded as he stopped next to me. I held up my broken comm. "Of course. You always somehow lose or break your comm."

He stomped off and I rolled my eyes at his attitude. Getting up off the floor, Nat came walking out of the room that Steve came from. Turning to her, "What's up his ass?"


	5. The Helicarriers

I followed Steve like he ordered through the Triskelion and into Fury's office. "You just can't stop yourself from lying, can you?"

Fury glanced up from his desk as Steve charged in. "I didn't lie. Agent Romanoff had a different mission than yours, and so did Grace." I bit my lip as Steve slowly turned to me, his jaw stern. My mission was to distract the guards so Nat could do her mission.

"Which you didn't feel obliged to share." Steve said as he moved his glare back to Fury.

"I'm not obliged to do anything." Fury fired back. Steve walked closer to the desk. 

"Those hostages could've died, Nick." Steve mentioned. I leaned back against one of the couches in Fury's office as he spoke. 

"I sent the greatest soldier in history to make sure that didn't happen." Fury gestured his head towards me. Steve barely gave me a look back.

"Soldiers trust each other, that's what makes it an army. Not a bunch of guys running around and shooting guns." Steve reminded him. I moved further into the room and leaned against the wall.

"The last time I trusted someone, I lost an eye. Look, I didn't want you doing anything you weren't comfortable with. Agent Romanoff and Donovan are comfortable with everything." Fury mentioned. 

"I can't lead a mission when people I'm leading have missions of their own." Steve complained. 

"It's called compartmentalization. Nobody spills the secrets because nobody knows them all." Fury told him. Steve leaned both knuckles on Fury's desk.

"Except you." Steve claimed as he leaned closer to Fury.

"You're wrong about me. I do share. I'm nice like that." Fury said as he stood up from his chair and led us into the elevator. "Insight Bay."

"Captain Rogers and Agent Donovan does not have clearance for Project Insight." The AI computer said.

"Director override. Fury, Nicholas J." Fury stated. The elevator confirmed him and started to move. Steve leaned back against the glass and held his arms in front of him as I did the same. 

"You know, they used to play music." I muttered causing Fury to glance at me. 

"Yeah. My grandfather operated one of these things for forty years. My granddad worked in a nice building, he got good tips. He'd walk home every night, rolls of ones stuffed in his lunch back. He'd say hi, people would say hi back. Time went on, neighborhood got rougher. He'd say hi, they'd say keep on steppin. Granddad got to grippin' that lunch bag a little tighter." Fury explained.

"Did he ever get mugged?" Steve asked as Fury laughed.

"Every week some punk would say, what's in the bag?" Fury trailed off.

"What did he do?"

"He'd show them. Bunch of crumpled ones and a loaded .22 Magnum." Fury smiles as he glanced down. "Granddad loved people but he didn't trust them very much." From behind Steve, I saw giant Helicarriers. "Yeah, I know. They're a little bigger than a .22."

We walked out of the elevator and he started to show us around. Guns strapped onto the sides of the carriers with little planes on top, resting on the runways. As went under one, I got a better look at them.

"This is Project Insight. Three next generation Helicarriers synced to a network of targeting satellites." Fury explained as he examined the Helicarrier in front of us.

"Launched from the Lemurian Star." I stated causing Fury to flicker his eyes to me as he nodded.

"Once we get them in the air, they never need to come down. Continuous suborbital flight courtesy of our new repulse engines." Fury motioned up towards them.

"Stark?" Steve asked, his eyebrow raised. 

"Well, he had a few suggestions once he got an up-close look at our old turbines. These new long-range precision guns can eliminate a thousand hostiles a minute. The satellites can read a terrorist's DNA before he steps outside his spider hole. We gonna neutralize a lot of threats before they even happen." Fury explained further. I leaned back on the railing as I watched the two of them.

"I thought the punishment usually came after the crime." Steve commented, catching what Fury was saying.

"We can't afford to wait that long." Fury replied.

"Who's we?" I spoke up, causing them both to face me.

"After New York, I convinced the World Security Council, we need a quantum surge in threat analysis. For once, we're way ahead of the curve." Fury explained more causing me to frown. A ding from my phone drew my attention from them.

_Pierce's office. Now_

_Rumlow_

I excused myself from them and went back to the elevator. Requesting the right floor, the doors opened for me to see that Pierce was already waiting for me. "Come in, Grace." He waved me in. "You're probably wondering why I called you here." 

"Yes." I said, sitting down. I crossed a leg over the other, my jeans tightening as I did so.

"I've been informed that you've been breaking and losing comms left and right. Are you trying to hide something, Ms. Donovan?" Pierce asked as he leaned his elbows on his knees. The door opened and Rumlow stepped in. He shut the door behind him and stood in front of it, his arms crossed. 

Okay, that made me a little nervous.

"What would I be hiding, Pierce?" I hissed slightly as I leaned forward, wrapping my hands around my crossed knee, cocking my head a little.

"No more insomniac episodes?" He leaned in more, his hands also coming together.

"I get more than five hours of sleep a night when I'm not on a mission so...what do you think?" I sarcastically said, not quite understanding what he really wanted. Rumlow shifted to his other foot causing my eyes to flicker to them.

"No nightmares or anything?" He pushed. My head cocked to the other side as the many nights of nightmares of the red star and the metal arm.

"I don't know what you're talking about." My voice wavered slightly at the end.

"Grace-,"

"Look, Counsellor, I've been on my own since I was nine years old. I don't think I need a damn father figure or babysitter," I pause, glancing at Rumlow. "To look after me. I have everything under control, get what I mean, Counsellor?" I grunted out, my lips pursing. "So, what is the real reason I'm here?"

"That's all I needed, Grace." He said, softly. I stared at him before standing up. I held my tongue as I walked to the door, with Rumlow not moving.

"Move or I'll move you." I threatened. Rumlow glanced over my shoulder and moved. I rolled my eyes and walked down the hall. A ping from my phone caused me to see the notification from the Smithsonian.

Great, they fixed it.


	6. The Alternate Route

Pulling my hat closer to my face, I walked into the desired section of the Smithsonian. The 'Welcome Back Cap and Donovan' caught my attention as I walked in.

"A symbol to the nation. A hero to the world. The story of Captain America is one of honor, bravery, and sacrifice. Denied enlistment due to poor health, Steven Rogers was chosen for a program unique in the annals of American warfare. One that would transform him into the world's first super soldier." The narrator explained through the speaker.

Stopping to stare at Steve's old bike, I noticed the little boy with a Captain America shirt on. His face was a dead giveaway. I gestured for him to be quiet and he nodded. I gave him a small smile and kept walking.

"Battle tested, Captain America and his Howling Commandos quickly earned their stripes. Their mission, taking down HYDRA, the Nazi rogue science division. Best friends since childhood, Bucky Barnes and Steven Rogers were inseparable on both schoolyard and battlefield." Reaching down, I traced over his face as the video of him and Steve laughing appeared on the screen.

God, I miss you.

Glancing at the fixed board, I made it to my area. Touching a few things of mine brought back a few memories of laughter and pain. Making it to the video room, I sat down also noticing a lot of people in here.

"Grace Donovan's story is one of tragedy and heart ache. Father dying before she was born and mother dying a few years later, Grace and her sister Emma, were left alone. Three years of starvation and cold winters, Emma soon perished. All alone, Grace was found by Dr. Abraham Erskine, creator of the super soldier serum." I watched the photos flicker as someone sat down next to me. Turning my head, Fury glanced away from the screen to me. 

"I need you for an assignment." Fury whispered as he shoved his hands into his jacket.

"What for?" I asked, turning away from him.

"Not sure yet, come on."

* * *

"Activating communications encryption protocol." 

"Open secure line 0405." Fury ordered the car. The car confirmed and Hill popped up on the screen.

"This is Hill."

"I need you here in D.C. Deep shadow conditions." Fury ordered her. I glanced away and out the windshield as I watched cars pass by.

"Give me four hours." Hill agreed.

"You have three, over." Fury said as he stopped at a red light. He glanced over at me then behind me. Turning too, two police officers in the car gave him a suspicious look. "Want to see my lease?"

The policemen quickly sounded their horn once before they started to drive off. Glancing over at Fury, he started to drive off when a car slammed into his side with a few more hit following. The airbags hit me in the chest, knocking my head back into the window. My head slammed into it again when another car hit me on my side.

Groaning, my vision blurred as I felt blood dripped into my mouth from my nose. "Fracture detected. Fracture detected."

"Hey, hey." A hand pulled my chin towards Fury's direction. "You okay?" I nodded.

"Recommend anesthetic injection." The car recommended. I glanced up to see that a red light was where my ribs were and I could feel it with every breathe. I got into the glove box and injected it into my arm as Fury did his.

"D.C. Metro Police dispatch shows no units in this area." Fury glanced around at all the police cars when a SWAT team truck pulled up.

"Fury..." I trailed off as men got out of the truck.

"I know. Get us out of here." Then they all started to shoot at the windows causing me to flinch back.

"Propulsion systems offline." 

"Then reboot, dammit!" I yelled at it. The armor on the window starts to become weaker as the car kept warning us of it. Then I noticed that they were setting up a battering ram by Fury's window.

"Warning! Window integrity compromised."

"You think? How long to propulsion?" Fury asked. He moved his seat back as he stared at me. "Get ready to shoot."

I nodded and the car leaned from the force of the ram hitting the window. Fury refused the counter measures and we both braced for the next two hits. "Window integrity one percent."

"Now!" Fury ordered. 

A gun came up from the glove box between us and I started to fire. The glass came off as I shot at anyone in sight that had a uniform on. Fury ordered the car to full acceleration and off we went. Fury started to drive and drove through traffic, ordering the car to do things that were damaged, causing me to yell at it. "Well, what's not damaged?"

"Air conditioning is fully operational." Then suddenly, I felt the cold air on my arm. Damn smartass. "Traffic ahead."

"Give me an alternate route." Fury ordered as police cars followed us.

"Traffic alert on Roosevelt Bridge. All vehicles stopped. 17th Avenue clear in three blocks, directly ahead." Fury rammed into a truck in our path before we got blocked in. We moved across a lawn as they started to fire again. Fury shoved me back against my seat as bullets flew by us.

He backed the truck up and hit the guy behind us before slamming the guy in front of us into a building. Turning to the left, we race down the road, cars honking at us.

Slamming into a car, I grabbed the gun from the man's hands as he reached inside my window. Another car came to our right as I punched the man to get him out. Slamming on the breaks, the two cars next to us were hit by a semi while Fury turned down a road. "Get me off the grid."

"Calculating route to secure location." Fury drove down the intersection as I glanced out the bullet covered windshield. That's when I saw it. Or should I say, him.

"Oh my god."

The man raised his metal arm and aimed a gun, shooting something. It hovered across the ground as it attached itself to the bottom of our car. Then we were airborne. 

The car landed on its ceiling with us slamming onto the roof as we scraped across the road, slowing to a stop. I let out a groan as I noticed Fury doing something on the ground. He grabbed onto my jacket and forced me into the hole in the ground as my door was ripped away.


	7. The Hidden

"No, no, not yours. Cameras." Fury mumbled out as we made it to my apartment door. My jaw clenched as I turned my head to him.

"Cameras? Seriously?"

"Not my idea. Pierce's. Steve's apartment. He'll be back soon?" He asked. I shrugged and Fury stumbled on me as I reached up the door jam, my fingers hitting the key. Same old Steve, hiding the key in the obvious place.

Putting the key in the hole, I helped Fury in the apartment and slumped him into a chair. Flickering off the lights, I walked over to the record player and I set it to play loudly. Once the music hit my ears, I recognized it.

It was my favorite song.

A memory of Bucky and I dancing flashed in my head as I sat down in the chair next to Fury. The sound of a window opening barely caught my ears then the music turned off. I instantly turned it back on with the remote in my hand. Then I saw him in the hallway in front of us.

"I don't remember giving you a key." Steve said, not noticing me in the corner.

Fury sighed. "You really think I'd need one?" He paused. "My wife kicked me out."

"Didn't know you were married." Steve commented as he stared at Fury.

"A lot of things you don't know about me." Fury replied.

"I know, Nick. That's the problem." Steve said as he reached over and turned on the light. His eyes flickered over Fury's injuries before he noticed me and mine.

Fury quickly indicates for him to be silent and turns the light back off. Reaching into his pocket, he pulls out his phone and shows it to him. 'Ears everywhere'. "I'm sorry to have to do this, but I had no place else to crash." He turns the phone back to Steve. 'S.H.I.E.L.D. compromised.'

"Who else knows about your wife?" Steve's eyes flickered to me then back to Fury as he shown another message. 'You, me and her.'

"Just...my friends." He said as he stood up from the chair.

"Is that what we are?" Steve asks, frowning.

"That's up to you." Just as Fury said that, three loud bangs echoed in the room; hitting Fury causing him to collapse on the floor. Jerking up from my chair, I glanced out the window for the shooter but same none from my angle as Steve drags Fury to the next room. "Donovan...leave."

Fury reached up and grabbed Steve's hand, passing him a flash drive as he spoke again. "Don't trust anyone." Then he passed out, his head falling back with the sound of someone trying to break in the door.

Steve turned to me. "They can't know you were here. Go." I shook my head as I glanced from him to Fury. A hand around my upper arm jerked me up as something was pushed into my hand. "I will shove your ass out that window if I have to, go."

Nodding shakily, I headed towards the window and started to climb out as a woman's voice echoed through Steve's apartment. Quickly climbing up the ladder, I made it to the roof and that's when I noticed the flash drive in my hand. "No, Steve."

A scuffing of feet caught my attention and I turned to see the shooter just at the start of the next building. He noticed me at the same time I noticed him. Before I knew it, my feet were running and so were his. He was fast.

Too fast.

He jumped down off the ledge and I followed him, seeing a shield being thrown towards him. The shooter jerked around and caught it causing me to jerk to a stop. He stared at me before throwing the shield back to Steve. Steve caught it, moving back a few feet from its force. 

Then the shooter was gone.

Steve turned around and saw me standing on the ledge of the building he came crashing out of. "Grace, get out of here before you're seen!" 

I nodded and ran along the ledge, jumping back to the fire escape. As I was climbing down, I remembered something. Going back up, I slid the window open and crawled in. Staying in the shadows, I moved to the bed and slid out the thing that I couldn't leave behind. 

The faded black book stared back at me before I slid it under my shirt and into the back of my jeans. Moving back out of my apartment, I climbed down the fire escape and onto the street. As I jogged through the streets, all I could think about was the shooter.

He had the same icy blue eyes.

Same long hair.

The same metal arm, along with the red star.

The shooter was the man from my nightmares.


	8. The Half-Truth

My knee bounced as my hands came up to rest against my chin. Out of the corner of my eye, Nat came running in through the hospital doors and into the room where they were operating on Fury.

I knew he wasn't going to make it when I heard the ballistics. Three slugs, no rifling. Completely untraceable. Something someone would use to stay hidden, untraceable.

The man's eyes flashed in my brain. He was real. He wasn't a fragment of my imagination, something that I didn't make up.

The heel of my boot hitting the floor triggered something in my brain as echoed footsteps sounded in my mind. Shaking my head to force the memory away, I leaned back feeling the book poking my back.

The door that Nat went through jerked open and Maria walked out. My foot stopped as I glanced up at her. The shake of her head gave me the answer I already knew.

He hadn't survived.

My head fell and my hair curtained around my face as I heard her walking away. A number flashed in my head and I sighed. Another victim to him.

"Natasha!" Steve's voice had my head snapping up as he followed her out of the room.

"Why was Fury in your apartment?" She whipped around, giving me a side glance. Her eyes flickered back as she also took in my face. The same look she gave was the same on Steve gave me when he first saw me tonight.

"I don't know." Steve shrugged, lying as he slid his hands into the pockets of his jacket.

"Cap, they want you back at S.H.I.E.L.D.," Rumlow said as he came up from behind Steve. His eyes turned to me, "What happened to you?"

Knowing he was talking about my bruised and cut up face, I lied. "The usual." He smirked at my answer.

"What, get in a fight with a pussycat?"

I rolled my eyes at his smugness. He hummed as he noticed my annoyance and turned away but not before I saw the smirk gracing his face. He walked away as Steve glanced at me. His eyes flickered to the gum machine before following after Rumlow. My hand clenched the flash drive as he did so.

Getting up to go to the restroom, I turned on the sink and placed my hand underneath the water, the book moving in the back of my jeans. When I glanced up, Nat stood behind me, her arms crossed. 

"Nat..."

She shook her head and walked to the bathroom door. Her hand reached up and turned the lock. "You were in the apartment with them, weren't you?"

"I don't know what you're talking about." I quickly lied as I turned back to the water that was rushing on my hands.

"Then what happened to your face? And you would never dirty that jacket, so what happened?" She questioned again. Taking a quick glance in the mirror, I saw what she was talking about. Dirt and concrete were all over the jacket, my expensive jacket.

"I was in a car accident." I gave her the half-truth.

"I know for a fact that you don't have a car. You use S.H.I.E.L.D.'s," She paused and I glanced up at her in the mirror. "I know you were in that apartment. Tell me the truth before I have to do something I'll regret."

"Nat, don't. I can't, I can't have you apart of this. Leave it alone." I angrily said as I moved past her to unlock the door. I paused for a second before glancing over my shoulder. "The only thing I can tell you, don't trust anyone. Not even me."


	9. The Ghost Story

Getting back to the Triskelion, I got into the elevator and ordered it up to Pierce's floor. A few seconds later, the doors opened and Steve stood there. I was about to walk out when he placed a hand on my shoulder to keep me in before ordering, "Operations control."

The door went to close when a hand stuck in causing the doors to jerk back open. Rumlow entered with some of the STRIKE team. I didn't like the look of this. Quickly sliding by Rumlow, I turned back as we locked eyes. "Rumlow."

"Little red."

The doors closed as my body froze in place. A flash of his face next to the man with the metal arm ripped its way through my brain.

Oh god.

Quickly pressing the button for the elevator too many times to count, another pair of doors open and I walked in with a group of men. As the elevator doors closed, I noticed one of the men had his hand near his gun; with another having sweat dripping down his face.

I groaned on the inside. So not in the mooood.

The doors opened again and I shoved the two in front of me out causing them to fall to the ground as the door closed again. Jerking my fist up, it contacted with a man's nose. He fell back, knocking into another.

Kicking my leg back, it collided with a pair of ribs. A hand landed on my wrist, wrenching it back. Letting out a grunt, I threw my head back with a loud grunt following but the hold never let go. Something clicked on my wrist and a loud 'vrhm' sound came from it before it jerked my wrist back to connect with the wall. I grunted as I collided with the wall, feeling the book fall out of the back of my jeans.

"Really boys, we're playing like this?" My voice came out sickeningly sweet, trying to keep their attention on me and not on the book on the ground. "Little cheaters."

With one hand restrained, I waited for them to come at me. Reaching into my jacket, my right hand wrapped around the handle of the gun in my side holster as they came closer to me.

Once one got closer, I kicked him away and ripped the gun out, hitting the second one in the face with enough force to knock him out. The male to my left grabbed my left grabbed my wrist and slammed it back. He growled like a dog before I kneed him between his legs before headbutting him. His body fell back on the ground, completely out.

Only two left.

Kicking up my legs, I wrapped them around the waist of the male to my right and jerked him to the left. He slammed into the other, knocking heads before falling backwards onto the ground.

Glancing down at my wrist, I hit the cuff with the butt of the gun. It cracked before unlocking from my wrist. Jerking the thing off, the doors opened to the garage. Picking up the book, my eyes casted down in disgust before walking out.

Throwing my hood over my head so it hid my face, I glanced back down the hall of the hospital, looking for Nat. Turning back, I came to a complete stop.

"You came back." She commented as she turned back around to walk with me. I nodded. 

"I told you not to trust me." I whispered as we turned a corner.

"You haven't given me a full reason not to," She paused as I shoved my hands into my pockets. "Are you going to give me one?"

"I know the shooter." I muttered as we turned around another corner.

"You gonna tell me how?" She whispered, glancing at me.

"I have these...these dreams of him. Well, I think....I don't think they're dreams," I paused, licking my lips as I glanced around to make sure no one was near us. "Of hurting people but I can't quite..."

"They're memories?" She questioned as she grabbed my arm. I nodded as she pulled me to a stop. "Steve's coming. We'll talk about this later. Get in here." She shoved me into a room and I waited, huddled against the wall. Leaning back against it, the book pressed more into the small of my back.

God, I gotta hid this thing somewhere else.

Soon after, Nat was being forced into the room by Steve as he ripped off his hood. "Where is it?"

"Safe." She kept a straight face even though she knew nothing of what he was asking. She glanced at me over her shoulder and I gave her a small nod.

"Do better." Steve told her.

"Where did you get it?" She asked, keeping up the act. My hand tightened around the drive that was still in my pocket.

"Why would I tell you?" Steve questioned.

"Fury gave it to you, didn't he? Why?" She responded back, glancing back over his shoulder to see me nod once more.

"What's on it?" Steve countered back.

"I don't know."

"Stop lying." He hissed at her as he tightened his hands around her upper arms.

"I only act like I know everything, Rogers." Nat replied. Steve glanced at the door, noticing me standing there. His eyes widened slightly before turning back to Nat.

"I bet you know Fury hired the pirates, didn't you?" Steve accused.

"Well, it makes sense. The ship was dirty, Fury needed a way in, so do you." Nat replied. 

"I'm not gonna ask you again." Steve hissed again.

"I know who killed Fury. Most of the intelligence community doesn't believe he exists, the ones who do call him the Winter Soldier. He's credited with over two dozen assassinations, along with his partner, in the last fifty years." Nat explained. Shaking my head, she was wrong.

"So, they both are a ghost story?" I asked, her glancing at me.

"Five years ago, I was escorting a nuclear engineer out of Iran, somebody shot out my tires near Odessa. We lost control, went straight over a cliff. I pulled us out but the Winter Soldier was there, but no partner. I was covering my engineer so he shot through me. Soviet slug-," As she explained, a vision of a car flying off the road filled my brain.

Stumbling out of the room, I leaned against a wall, sliding down it. My head throbbed as the memory continued. Him standing over her, me watching from a distance. Not my target, echoed in my brain.

"Grace?" A hand was gently placed over mine and I jerked slightly as I came out of the memory to look up. "Are you okay?" Steve was kneeling in front of me as Nat stood behind him. 

"I know him. The shooter." I admitted to Steve.

"How?" He whispered. Glancing over Steve's shoulder, I stared at Nat as I pulled out the flash drive.

"Let's find out."


	11. The Encouragement

Licking my lips, I tasted the dust from all the rubble on them. Feeling the book still in the back of my jeans, I shoved my hands into my pockets as Steve stepped up to the porch. He reached up and knocked on the sliding door as Nat and I leaned against the railing. The door opened and Sam's face appeared.

"Hey man." He greeted Steve then turned his glaze from Nat to me. 

"I'm sorry about this. We need a place to lay low." Steve apologized.

"Everyone we know is trying to kill us." Nat mentioned to help make up his mind. Sam paused for a moment before answering.

"Not everyone." He motioned us in and we followed after him. "There is a guest room for you guys to clean up. One of you can also use the bathroom in my room." I thanked him before going to the room he pointed out as his.

Once I was in, I noticed all the memorabilia on the walls. Noticing a bookcase next to his bed, I removed the book from my jeans and slid it between two books, concealing it with the others.

Moving to his bathroom, I turned on the water as well as grabbing a rag to dip it under. Ringing it out, I started to swipe my face with it. I pushed a little harder around the cuts on the side of my face and down my neck, I hissed slightly as the soap burned. 

"You push any harder, it'll start to bleed." Glancing over in the mirror, Sam stood in the entrance of the bathroom.

"Wouldn't bother me. Not the worse I've had." I mentioned as I dipped the rag back in the water.

"This isn't from what happened before you came here?" He asked, walking into the bathroom. He pointed out the extra bruising and cuts from a few days ago. I shook my head as I finished cleaning off my face.

"No, agent kinds of injuries." I kept it short and sweet. He got that 'oh' look on his face before nodding. I dipped the braid of my hair into the water before ringing it out and unbraiding it.

"How do you work with that much hair? Don't bad guys, you know, like yank it?" I laughed at his silly question. I shook my head as I finished unbraiding it.

"Not really. That's what braids and buns are for."

"Well, um, I made breakfast. If you do that sort of thing." He mentioned and I nodded. He tapped on the counter before going to walk out of the bathroom. When I looked back in the mirror, he had stopped just outside the door and was looking around. 

Please, don't notice. Please.

He slightly shrugged and kept walking. Once I knew he was gone, I reached into the pocket of my jacket. I found what I was reaching for and I tightened my fingers around the drive that I had managed to grab before the missile struck.

" _A little encouragement to stay alive."_

Zola's comment echoed in my brain. What did he mean by that?

I licked my lips before letting go of the drive. Grabbing all my hair, I pulled it up into a messy bun before walking out of the bathroom, stopping where Sam had. My eyes moved to the bookcase and connected with the book on the shelf; praying that when Sam came in here again, he still wouldn't notice. I threw my jacket on his bed before walking out.

"So question is," I heard Nat say as I walked into the kitchen. "Who in S.H.I.E.L.D. could launch a domestic missile strike." She leaned back in the chair she was sitting in.

"Pierce." I stated as I sat down across from her, grabbing a piece of toast that was sitting in the middle of the table. I took a bite as I stared at her.

"Who happens to be sitting on top of the most secure building in the world." She commented, crossing her arms. 

"But he's not working alone. Zola's algorithm was on the Lemurian Star." Steve added.

"So was Jasper Sitwell." Hatred for him came out as I spoke. Nat raised an eyebrow at that but she didn't say a word.

"So the real question; how do the three most wanted people in Washington kidnap a S.H.I.E.L.D. officer in broad daylight?" Steve asked as he leaned against the counter.

"The answer is, you don't." Sam said as he drops a file down in front of us.

"What's this?" Steve asked, opening the folder.

"Call it a resume." Sam answered. Nat picked up a photo of him with a para-rescue team.

"Is this Bakhmala? The Khalid Khadil mission, that was you." She paused to turn to Steve. "You didn't say he was a para-rescue."

"Is this Riley?" Steve asked as he showed the picture he was holding.

"Yeah."

"I heard they couldn't bring in the chopper because of RPGs. What did you use, a stealth chute?" Nat asked, curious.

"No, these." Sam hands Steve another file and he opens it.

"I thought you said you were a pilot." Steve stated.

"He never said pilot." I commented as I stole Nat's glass of water and drank out of it. She glared at me as I put it back down. I smiled sweetly at her as I did so.

"I can't ask you to do this, Sam. You got out for a good reason." Steve told him, closing the folder.

"Dude, Captain America needs my help. There's no better reason to get back in." Sam acknowledged.

"Where can we get our hands on one of these things?" Steve asked, glancing down at the folder.

"The last one is at Fort Meade, behind three guarded gates and a twelve-inch steel wall." Sam replied. Steve glanced at both Nat and I, we both shrugged our shoulders. We've had harder things to crack than this.

"Shouldn't be a problem."


	12. The Soldier

"Having fun with the laser pointer?" I asked, sitting on the ledge of the rooftop. Nat scoffed as we both watched as Sitwell fell for the gag. 

Sam met up with him and they disappeared into the building. Once they opened the door to the roof, Steve grabbed onto the folds of Sitwell's suit jacket and threw him across the rooftop; with him stopping just short of me. Sitwell's eyes followed up my legs to my chest then to my face; his eyes widening at the sight of me sitting on the ledge.

"Probably wishing I was really dead now, don't you?" I harassed him as Steve and Nat walked up behind him. I placed my foot on his chest and kicked him back so he could look at Steve. 

"Tell me about Zola's algorithm." Steve ordered him.

"Never heard of it." Sitwell lied. I kicked up the edge of my boot into his ribs. His head snapped back to me as I casually folded my arms, still seated on the ledge.

"What were you doing on the Lemurian Star?" Steve continued.

"I was throwing up, I get seasick." Sitwell lied again. Steve grabbed him by his jacket again and forced him up. He leaned Sitwell over the edge next to me and he just smiled. "Is this little display meant to insinuate that you're gonna throw me off the roof? Because it's really not your style, Rogers."

"You're right. It's not. It's hers." Steve steps aside and Nat kicks Sitwell off the roof. He plummets down, his scream echoing in my ear causing me to laugh slightly.

"Oh, wait. What about that girl from accounting, Laura...?" Nat asked as we waited.

"Lillian. Lip piercing, right?" Steve responded as he turned to move me off the ledge, a little fear in his eye that I was going to fall backwards to my death.

"Yeah, she's cute." I played along with Nat's game which got me a glare from him.

"Yeah, I'm not ready for that." Suddenly, Sam, in his wings flies up, holding a squealing Sitwell. Sam lets him go and he drops down onto the rooftop. Sam landed just behind him by the door. I walked with the two as Sitwell held out his hand in fear. 

"Zola's algorithm is a program...for choosing Insight's targets." Sitwell quickly stumbled out.

"What targets?" Steve asked as I crossed my arms and cocked a hip.

"You! A TV anchor in Cairo, the Undersecretary of Defense, a high school valedictorian in Iowa City. Bruce Banner, Stephen Strange, you Grace, anyone who's threat to Hydra! Now or in the future." Sitwell explained.

"The future? How could it know?" I asked as I walked closer to him. He backs up a little in fear and slightly laughs.

"How could it not? The 21st century is a digital book. Zola taught Hydra how to read it. Your bank records, medical histories, voting patterns, e-mails, phone calls, your damn SAT scores. Zola's algorithm evaluates people's past to predict their future." Sitwell explained more.

"And what then?" Steve added on.

"Oh my god. Pierce is gonna kill me." Sitwell complained, looking down at his hands. I crotched down and grabbed ahold of his jacket, jerking him closer to my face.

"You tried to kill me twice in the last few days, who should you be more afraid of right now? What then?" I hissed into his face. His eyes lit up with fear, showing he was more afraid of me than Pierce.

"Then the Insight Helicarriers scratch people off the list. A few million at a time."

* * *

Sitwell fidgets next to me as he glances out the window then back to me then to Sam as he drives us to the Triskelion. "Hydra doesn't like leaks."

"So why don't you try sticking a cork in it." Sam suggests as he went back to driving. I turned my head as Nat pulled up information on her phone.

"Insight's launching in sixteen hours, we're cutting it a little bit close here." She told us.

"I know. We'll use him to bypass the DNA scans and access the Helicarriers directly." Steve replied before she moved back into her seat.

"What?! Are you crazy? That is a terrible, terrible idea." Sitwell argued. A loud bang came from the roof before a hand came through the window, yanking Sitwell out. I watch as the hand flung him into the oncoming traffic, killing him instantly. My eyes widened at the sight before shot started coming into the car.

Steve reached over and grabbed the hand break, yanking it back causing the shooter to fly off the hood, him rolling down the street. His arm came out and he slowed to a stop. The man stood up and I recognized the metal arm. 

The one who shot at Fury and I a few days ago.

Suddenly, I was in Steve's lap as another car slams into us and pushing us closer to the soldier. Hearing shots being fired, I yanked down Steve's head and kicked Sam in the shoulder as the bullets hit both the headrests. Sliding up, the Winter Soldier jumps up and grabs onto the top of the car. Then, the steering wheel was gone.

"Shit!" Sam yelled as Nat started shooting at the soldier but he jumps back to the truck behind us as it tried to push us off the road.

"Hang on." Steve ordered. He breaks the door off as Nat got into my lap. Steve grabbed onto Sam's shirt and yanked us out of the car. In the process of him shoving us out, he lost his grip on me. I tucked my arms close to my body as I rolled against the pavement.

I slowed to a stop and I could feel the scraps along my arms. Standing up, bullets flew past my head causing me to duck behind a car. Kneeling by the hood, I glanced over to see where the agents were. The soldier turned in my direction and shot at me. Yanking out a gun Sam had given me from my boot, I aimed at him and managed to shoot him in his mask.

While he was distracted, I ran towards the edge of the overpass and jumped over with bullets following me. Shooting a wire out of my bracelet, I managed to land underneath the overpass with the soldier shooting at me.

"Grace! Go that way!" Nat hollered as we ran in the same direction. I nodded and split off towards the other side of the street.

Hiding behind a car, I looked back up at the bridge as the soldier jumped over the ledge and slammed down on top of a car, crushing the roof in. He stalked down the car and headed towards Nat's position.

Quietly moving behind the car that he was in front of as he stopped, hearing a playing of Nat's voice. He reached into his side pocket and pulled out a circular object, rolling it underneath the car. It exploded and Nat jumps out, landing on the soldier's shoulder. She yanks out a wire from her bracelet and tried to strangle him with it but he threw her off.

I ran at him as he did and kicked him back away from her. He took a few steps backwards from the impact on his chest but swung his metal arm at me. I ducked underneath it and punched him in the side. He grabbed me by my bun and raised his arm. As his arm was coming down, I quickly pulled out a tiny taser and attached it to his arm as I pulled my leg up and kicked him away.

Turning, I started to run, trying to get him to follow as Nat yelled at the civilians to get out of the way before getting shot in the shoulder. She falls behind a car when the soldier came up behind her and aimed. Then I noticed Steve running at him full speed and they started to fight. Running to her, I kneeled next to her.

"You okay?" I asked as I pulled her forward so I could see if the bullet went all the way through, luckily it did.

"Just a flesh wound." She huffed as I pressed my hand harder on her wound to stop the bleeding. "I'm fine. Go help Steve."

She shoved me away and I stood up, jumping up on the hood of the car. I threw one of the only knives I had at the soldier and he ducked, giving Steve a chance to shove him away. The soldier rolled away from him and the mask he was wearing fell onto the ground. He stood up and turned to us, showing a face Steve and I knew so well.

"Bucky?" I whispered as I dropped onto the road as Steve repeated me but only louder. The man I once knew glanced at me before turning back to Steve.

"Who the hell is Bucky?" He asked, confused. He glanced down before turning his eyes back to Steve, raising the gun in his hand. Then, Sam came out of nowhere and kicked Bucky aside before landing on the ground.

Bucky got up and takes aim again before a loud bang from my right echoed in my ears. A grenade exploded and when the smoke cleared, Bucky was gone. And that's when we heard sirens from all different directions. Soon, trucks pulled up and we were surrounded by the STRIKE team with Rumlow leading.

"Drop the shield, Cap! On your knees!" Rumlow yelled before a pair of hands on my shoulders shoved me to my knees and forced my hands behind my back. A muzzle of a gun graced my temple as I kneeled in shock. Rumlow walked over and looked down at me. "Put the gun down. Not here." The gun disappeared before cuffs were put around my wrist and I was forced into the van with the others as I still hadn't come out of my shock.

Bucky was alive but playing for the other team.

"It was him. He looked right at me like he didn't even know me." Steve whispered as he stared down as his hands as we were being escorted to our death. "He didn't even recognize Grace."

"How's that even possible?' It was like seventy years ago." Sam said as he glanced between Steve and I.

"Zola. Bucky's whole unit, me included, was captured in '43, Zola experimented on us. Used us like lab rats. Whatever he did helped us survive the fall. They must have found and..." I trailed off, tears pricking my eyes.

"And you. You fell too. If they found him, they would have found you. It would explain all those missing years that you can't recount and none of that is either of yours fault." Nat added on.

"I couldn't do that. I could never." I shivered at the thought, praying she was wrong but deep down, some part of me was fearing that she was right.

"Not if you didn't have control." Sam commented.

"Even when I had nothing, I had Bucky." Steve whispered as he played with his fingers. I sniffed and I noticed that Sam was staring at Nat.

"We need to get a doctor here. We don't put pressure on that wound, she's gonna bleed out here in the truck." Sam demanded. A guard pulls out an electric rod in response but flips it and electrocuted the other guard, knocking him out. The guard ripped off their helmet to reveal Hill. 

"Ah. That thing was squeezing my brain." She said as Sam looked at her in confusion. She gestured towards him. "Who's this guy?"

I reached over and grabbed the keys from the guards, unlocking my wrists. "Doesn't matter. If they really are Hydra, we gotta go before they actually kill us this time."

* * *

As Hill guided us into a secret facility, a man ran towards us and I heard him start speaking but I wasn't listening. I was trying to piece together how and why.

How was I apart of S.H.I.E.L.D. but also maybe apart of Hydra? And if I was, how did I get out from under their grasps but Bucky didn't? Why, if I was like Bucky, why did they let me go?

"Grace, come." Hill wrapped an arm around my waist and started to lead me into a room. First I saw a bed then I saw him.

"About damn time." Fury commented as the doctor treated Nat. "Lacerated spinal column, cracked sternum, shattered collarbone, perforated liver, one hell of a headache."

"Don't forget your collapse lung." The doctor mentioned as I sat down next to Fury.

"Oh, let's not forget that. Otherwise, I'm good." Fury added on. I glanced down at my red tinted hands as I felt eyes on me. Turning my eyes slightly, I saw Steve staring at me. 

"They cut you open, your heart stopped." Nat reminded him.

"Tetrodotoxin B. Slows the pulse down to one beat a minute. Banner developed it for stress. Didn't work so great for him but we found a use for it." Fury explained as the doctor finished up with Nat and moved to check me. 

"Why the secrecy? Why not just tell us?" Steve asked, crossing his arms. The doctor leaned my head back slightly and rubbed a cotton sway with alcohol on my cheek.

"Any attempt on the director's life had to look successful." Hill said as she continued to watch me from her seat.

"Can't kill you if you're already dead. Besides, I wasn't sure who to trust." Fury's eyes snapped to me before turning to Steve.

"You mean me, don't you?" I whispered as I played with my fingers. I glanced up at him. "You knew something was wrong with me, didn't you? With my missing years?"

"Not at first but when Pierce started asking around and mentioning nightmares and the Retreat, which I wasn't even aware of until you returned, then I started to think." Fury answered. I frowned when he mentioned the nightmares.

"Everyone has nightmares, why would he dig into mine unless I was important to him. Which apparently, I might be." I answered my own question.

Fury grabbed the photo of Pierce from the folder on the table. "This man declined the Nobel Peace Prize. He said, "Peace wasn't an achievement, it was a responsibility." See, it's stuff like this that gives me trust issues."

"We have to stop the launch." Nat reminded us of the Helicarriers.

"I don't think the Council's accepting my calls anymore." Fury added on before reaching over to a case that was close to him. He opened it and it contained three chips. 

"What's that?" Sam asked, crossing his arms. 

"Once the Helicarriers reached three thousand feet, they'll triangulate with Insight satellites becoming fully weaponized." Hill explained. My brows came together in thought.

"We need to breach those carriers and replace their targeting blades with our own." Fury added on from Hill.

"One or two won't cut it. We need to link all three carriers for this to work because if even one of those ships remains operational, a whole lot of people are gonna die." Hill cautioned us. 

"We have to assume everyone aboard those carriers is Hydra. We need to get past them, insert the server blades, and maybe we can salvage what's left-,"

"We're not salvaging anything." Steve interrupted Fury. "We're not just taking down carriers, Nick, we're taking down S.H.I.E.L.D."

"S.H.I.E.L.D. had nothing to do with it." Fury fought back.

"You have us this mission, Fury, this is how its ends. S.H.I.E.L.D.'s been compromised and so have I, you said so yourself. Hydra grew right under our nose and nobody noticed." I butted in, admitting to myself that I was compromised. I didn't know what they could do if they still have control of me like they have with Bucky.

"Why do you think we're meeting in this cave? I noticed." Fury pointed out, glancing around the cave.

"And how many paid the price before you did?" Steve voiced, glimpsing at me again.

"Look, I didn't know about Barnes." Fury stated.

"Even if you have, would you have told me? Grace? Or would you have compartmentalized that too? S.H.I.E.L.D., Hydra, it all goes." Steve concluded in anger. 

"He's right." Hill confessed. 

Fury looked to Nat then to Sam. "Don't look at me. I do what he does, just slower."

"Well...looks like you're giving the orders now, Captain." Fury said, giving over control. Getting up, everyone stared at me as I walked out of the room. The wind moved my hair as I stared out over the dam. The wind reminds me of a time with Bucky.

_A few tears slipped down my face as Bucky gently pulled me back into his arms and held me, his hand smoothing my hair back as my head laid on his chest._

_"I'm here. I'm here, Grace."_

I closed my eyes and took a deep breathe. He had promised that night that he would be there, forever and always. As long as the universe aloud him too. And somehow, he was able to keep his promise but not fully.

"Grace?" I jerked around to the sound of Steve's voice. He was standing a few feet away from me, his hands behind his back. "You can't be there. Not with..."

"Steve, I'm fine. They have nothing to use except Bucky. What can they do to me that they haven't already done?" I asked him as he moved closer. He leaned his elbows against the railing like I was and licked his lips.

"Are you sure you can handle it? Fighting him, knowing what he means to you." He asked. 

"For years, I've wondered about my past. About those seventy years. Zola may have given me the answer but probably expected me to die before I knew it." I said, my hand gripping around the drive that I somehow hidden from Rumlow when he had searched me before putting me in the van.

Thank god, I hid the book back at Sam's cause he sure as hell would have found it.

"How?" Steve pondered, glancing over at me before turning back to the dam. I peered over at him and smiled, a bit of sadness lacing my voice.

"When we survive, maybe I'll tell you."

"He's gonna be there, you know?" Steve and I jerked our head to look over at Sam.

"I know." Steve replied.

"Look whoever he used to be, the guy he is now, I don't think he's the kind you save. He's the kind you stop." Sam pointed out.

"I don't know if I can do that." Steve said, his eyes flickering to me resulting in me answering with a shake of my head. Bucky meant too much to me. He was worth everything.

"Well, he might not give you a choice. He doesn't know you. Either of you." Sam reminded us. My brain flashed back to the bridge where he had glazed over eyes like he was trying to remember but couldn't.

"He will." I spoke. 

"Gear up, it's time." Steve ordered and started to walk towards the other end of the dam.

"You two gonna wear that?" Sam asked, pointing out our civilian clothes. I turned and started to walk with Steve as he answered Sam.

"No. If you're gonna fight a war, you gotta wear a uniform."


	13. The Price of Freedom

Being back in this old suit was weird. Even though it wasn't my original uniform, the historians tried to make it exactly like it was back in 1940's which they almost got right but the fabric was a little off.

"Rip it out." Steve ordered as I yanked out a piece of wiring in the wall that let out a loud pitch noise into some earpieces. Glancing down at the wire, I shrugged and threw it down onto the floor. The door opened to the tech room and Hill and Sam pointed their guns at the man. "Excuse us."

Stepping up to the tech board, I touched a few buttons, turning to Steve. "You're good to go, just press this button here."

"Attention, all S.H.I.E.L.D. agents. This is Steve Rogers. You've heard a lot about me over the last few days, some of you even ordered to hunt me and another agent down. But I think it's time you know the truth," Steve glanced at me before turning back to the monitors in front of him. 

"S.H.I.E.L.D. is not what we thought it was, it's been taken over by Hydra. Alexander Pierce is their leader. STRIKE and Insight crew are Hydra as well. I don't know how many more but I know they're in the building. They could be standing right next to you. They almost have what they want: absolute control. They shot Nick Fury and it won't end there. If you launch those Helicarriers today, Hydra will be able to kill anyone that stands in their way unless we stop them. I know I'm asking a lot but the price of freedom is high. It always has been and it's a price I'm willing to pay. And if I'm the only one then so be it but I'm willing to bet I'm not."

Steve let go of the button and glanced back at Sam and I. "Did you write that down first or was it off the top of your head?" Sam asked before Hill spole up from her seat by the monitors.

"They're initiating launch."


	14. The Launched and Fallen

"Keep up, Sam!" I yelled to him from behind me as the three of us made our way to the Helicarriers. 

"Hey, Cap, how do we know the good guys from the bad guys?" Sam asked as he sped up a bit causing Steve to glance behind him then to me.

"If they're shooting at you, they're bad." Steve answered causing me to shake my head. The wings of the suit came out and Sam flew up as Steve and I headed further down the runway before jumping off the ledge onto one of the Helicarriers which resulted in Hydra agents shooting at us.

"Hey, Cap, I found those bad guys you were talking about." Sam said as he avoided getting shot by moving from left to right.

"You okay?" I asked as I hid behind a crate when a Hydra agent turned his gun my way. 

"I'm not dead yet." Sam responded.

Steve glanced at me as agents kept firing at us. "Here!" He tossed me one of two targeting blades he had and I caught it. "I'll try to keep them off your back but I made no promises."

I nodded and glanced around the crate I was hiding behind, seeing most of the agents going around towards Steve's side. Moving slowly around the crate, I noticed the door across the way. 

Gotta make a break for it.

Biting my lip, I pulled out a few knives before jetting off. I was halfway across when a few agents noticed me rushing past. Two of them turned and started to fire at me when I threw two knives at them. They sunk themselves into their necks and they went down. Getting to the door, I turned to check on Steve.

Seeing that he was handling himself and keeping them off me like he said, I shoved my way through the door. Remembering the floor plan Fury had given us, I ran in the direction that I needed to go.

I was cutting across a hall when an agent stepped into my path. I didn't slow down as I slid down my knees, grabbing onto the man's ankle, ripping his foot out from under him. He fell to his back and I struck his head causing it to bounce off the floor. His eyes fluttered shut as I got up, deciding to shoot any agents that decided to fire at me.

Running down the catwalk, I got to the computer and typed in the code for it. The blades came down on their shelves and I pulled one out, replacing it with one Steve had given me. "Alpha lock." I mumbled into the comm.

Turning, I froze where I stood. Six agents stood on two separate catwalks from my exit but they didn't have their guns raised. Hmm, wonder why?

"Bravo lock." I heard Sam's voice echo into the comm before one of them spoke.

"Come on, Red. Don't make us hurt you. Just come with us quietly and this will be all over. Hell, you don't even have to remember it."

"Really? I can come home?" I asked, giving out my best puppy eyes. They always work.

"Yes, Pierce has been wanting you back since the day we abandoned you. Rumlow thought you made the Asset uncooperatable but you didn't. You made him stronger." Another agent added on from the other catwalk.

"I want to come home." I nodded as I spoke. Walking forward, one of the men grabbed my elbow, leading me out of the computer area.

"We got Red. She complied." One male that was walking in front of me said into his comm as we got to an open area where I had more room. The man holding my arm went down first since he was the closest. 

After striking him in the throat with my other fist, he let go of my arm as I jerked out two knives, throwing them at the two to my left. The other three turned as they heard the thud of bodies hitting the ground. Pulling out my gun, I aimed at them before they could even move to grab theirs. "Come on, boys. You really thought it would be that easy?"

"Red...don't do this. We can work things out." The main agent said, standing in front of the triangle. I rolled my eyes and shot the two agents on either side of him, him not even turning away from my barrel as the bodies hit the ground.

"First thing," I paused as I moved closer to him, kicking him to his knees. "My name is Grace. Second, give me your comm."

He quickly handed it over as I held the gun to his head. "Gomez, answer." Rumlow's voice reached my ear as I pushed the comm in. Keeping my gun trained on Gomez, I spoke into it.

"Gomez is unavailable, Rumlow."

"Red."

I pressed on the comm as I shot Gomez, making sure Rumlow could hear the gunshot and the body hitting the ground. "If I see you, you'll be next."

Before he could say a word, I threw the comm to the ground and ripped my knives from the Hydra agents' throats. While running towards the door I came from, I wiped the blood onto my suit leg. Once I got through it, I saw Steve running so I caught up to him with agent following behind us. "Hey, Sam? Gonna need a ride."

"Rogers! Let me know when you're ready." Sam answered as I caught sight of him in the air. Steve grabbed onto one of my side holsters and we jumped off as a grenade exploded from where we just were.

We fell through the air as I yelled, "We just did!"

Steve's grip tightened as we both saw Sam coming down towards us. He grabbed onto Steve's hand and let out a loud roar before flying up. Once we got to the last carrier, Steve let go of Sam and we both landed on our feet. 

Sam landed and closed his wings as he walked next to us. "You know, you two are a lot heavier than you look."

"I had a big breakfast." Steve joked just as he was suddenly sidelined, being shoved off the Helicarrier.

"Steve!" Sam and I yelled as Sam went to fly off when Bucky, no, the soldier grabbed onto a wing, throwing him back into the air behind me. 

I ran at the soldier, him ducking down causing his head to hit my thighs. I flipped over and down his back as he straightened and that's when Sam started shooting at him. Flipping up to my feet, the soldier backflipped away from me and from the bullets; hiding behind an air duct.

"Grace?" Sam yelled as he put away his guns. 

"Go get Steve, I got this!" I yelled as he went to fly away again when something ripped its way through one of his wings. The soldier shoved him down with the wire that was attached. Grabbing a knife, I prayed it wouldn't hit anything vital before throwing it.

The soldier turned just in time to catch it by the handle before turning his dead eyes towards me. He chucked it back at me as I hid behind one of the many air ducts, the knife hitting the metal behind me. 

Hearing metal being ripped off, I looked out to see the soldier running at Sam who was now on the ground. Running towards him at the same time, the soldier kicked him off before just standing there watching as he fell.

"Cap, Cap, come in, you okay?" Sam yelled into the comm and that caused the soldier to slowly turn, noticing me behind him. He stared at me for a second before charging.

Sidestepping him, I grabbed his flesh arm and forced it down. Flipping up, I wrapped my legs around his head before shoving all my weight back, forcing us both to the ground. As my legs let go, the sound of swirling metal caught my ear before a metal fist came down near my head.

Jerking my head away from the hand, I punched him in the stomach but that didn't affect him. He grabbed my side holster with the metal hand and jerked me up before slamming me back down. I grabbed onto his hair and forced him closer causing his lower half to come up. Getting my feet onto his chest, I grunted as I flipped him over me; but he didn't let go of the strap.

Unbuckling the front, I slid out before he could get ahold of me for real this time. I went to kick him in the face when he grabbed onto the same foot, shoving me back a few feet.

"Grace?!" Steve's voice echoed into my comm as I barely ducked the punches that the soldier was throwing at me.

"Little busy here, Cap!" I yelled back before spotting something behind the soldier. Dodging the metal fist again, I leaned down and wrapped my arms around his waist.

Sorry, my love.

Running full force, I shoved him over the ledge of the Helicarrier, stopping before I went over myself. A tear came down as he went over but I turned and ran for the entrance door. Yet somehow praying that he grabbed a hold of something and didn't just fall all the way down to the earth. "Cap, location?"

"Still on the Helicarrier, making my way down to the targeting blades. You?" He huffed out as I ran down the hall.

"On my way down. Meet you there."

* * *

Meeting Steve at the stairs, he went down first as I followed after him. Once down on the catwalk, I noticed that a little someone actually heard my prayers for once but somehow I wished they didn't.

He stood right in front of where we needed to be, guns in both of his lowered hands. 

"People are gonna die, Buck." Steve started to speak. "I can't let that happen." He didn't say a word, not like he could. He just stared with those dead icy blue eyes. "Please don't make me do this."

Steve threw the shield and the soldier blocked it; it bouncing off the metal and back into Steve's hands. The soldier fired at Steve as I backed up on the catwalk, making my way around to the other side while he had the soldier distracted.

Hearing Steve groan, I glanced over and saw red dripping from his side. He twirled and shoved the soldier back, knocking him off his feet. He got up and pulled out a knife. Then I remembered something that he liked to do.

"Watch out for the side swipe!" I quickly cautioned into the comm as I hurried down the other catwalk, getting close to where they were fighting. And he actually did what I predicted. He side-swiped the shield as Steve blocked it.

Somehow Steve managed to shove the soldier back and guarded me as I started putting in the passcode on the computer. Hearing grunts from behind me, I knew the soldier was back up and fighting. Once the blades came down, I heard the swirling of metal being shifted and Steve grunting after.

Turning, Steve threw me the blade from his pocket as the soldier threw a punch which he blocked with the shield. As Steve pushed the soldier back, the soldier managed to grab my thigh holster, taking me with him. Landing on top of him, I rolled off as he went to swing down his elbow, rolling completely off the catwalk. 

Flying down, the targeting blade fell out of my hands as I slowed down before going over the small ledge. I heard loud grunting before someone landed on my back, pushing me over the ledge. Flipping in the air, I managed to land on my back; getting the air knocked out of me. 

Glancing up, Steve's eyes locked with mine before he stood up and continued to fight the soldier. Shoving myself up, I glanced around to see how I could get back up there when I noticed the targeting blade falling to the ground not far from me. 

Fucking Steve, you're going to break it.

Glancing back up, the soldier was kicked off and he landed further away from me which I liked. Steve jumped down and nodded at me, the both of us running for the blade. The sound of the shield being thrown caught my attention causing me to duck just in case it was coming at me.

Apparently Steve didn't notice because it struck him in the back, sending him flying in front of me. I glanced back as the soldier pulled out a gun. Quickly grabbing the shield, I guarded both Steve and I from the bullets. He grabbed onto the straps and I let go as I could see the targeting blade out of the corner of my eye.

Steve stood up and threw the shield but the soldier blocked it with the metal arm before pulling out another knife. Hearing Steve let out a yell, I turned around and saw the knife imbedded in his soldier. He headbutted the soldier before he jerked Steve away from him. The soldier came charging at me as soon as he noticed that I was by the targeting blade.

He threw a punch which I ducked under and kicked one of his knees out causing him to slip on the glass, him landing on the ground. He reached out before I could and grabbed the targeting blade. Steve grabbed onto his wrist and lifted him up in the air by his neck.

"He'll snap it if he gets the chance." I reminded Steve as I got ready to catch it by their closed hands. He flipped the soldier onto his side and wrenched his head back so he couldn't use his metal arm to hit anything. 

Grabbing into his wrist, I tried to wrench his fingers open to no avail. "Drop it! Drop it!" Steve ordered as the soldier tried to take another swing.

"Break it, Steve." I ordered him as he noticed that I couldn't get his fist loose. He gave me a look before I heard the tall tale snap, the soldier letting out a yell of pain but that didn't do anything; his fist just tightening more.

Steve jerked him around and landed on his back, his arm around the soldier's neck as he struggled. The soldier grabbed Steve's wrist and forced it down but lost his grip and it aloud Steve to wrap a leg around the metal arm.

The sight was horrible to watch. Knowing this was the shell of the man I loved. We both didn't want to do this but millions were gonna die if we didn't. 

As he started to slip under, the targeting blade slipped from his hand and I grabbed it. Steve threw him off and he urged me towards the latter. "You first."

I started to climb quickly with Steve just under me. When we got to the top, he jumped for the ledge and pulled himself up, holding out a hand for me. I jumped for it, just catching his hand and he pulled me up as shot rang out. He went down before another went off. I gasped in pain, falling next to him. Glancing down, I moved my hand away from my side to see blood seeping out of a bullet wound.

"Come on, you're okay." Steve reassured me as he pulled me up and went to help me jump onto the ledge when a bullet hit just next to where my hand was. "Go, go."

I managed to get myself up and onto the catwalk as another shot rang out before Hill came over the comm. "Thirty seconds, Cap."

"Stand by." I responded into the comm as I pulled out the blade from the hidden compartment in my boot and went to put it in when another shot rang out. My back arched as I slammed against the computer. Sliding down, all I felt was pain.

"Grace!" Steve yelled but it was faded. Glancing down, I saw more blood seeping out of my body from under my left breast. Gasping out as it was more difficult to get in air, my eyes caught sight of the targeting blade still in my hand. 

Despite feeling like my lung was free floating in my chest, I slowly got up. Leaning against the control, I reached up and barely was able to place the blade where I had removed one from earlier. "Charlie...lock."

Falling down against the computer, I saw Steve crawling up to the catwalk. "Okay guys, get out of there." Hill instructed.

Steve kneeled next to me, taking in the blood flowing out of my chest; soaking the front of my suit. He pressed a hand down on it as he raised his other wrist. "Fire now."

"But Steve..."

"Do it!" He ordered her again. "Do it now!"

He barely helped me to my feet with multiple bullet wounds himself, we slowly started to move down the catwalk as the carrier we were in started to rumble from all the bullets being shot at it. He held me tighter as we both heard a yell from down below.

Looking down, I saw the soldier pinned beneath a large piece of metal. Turning to Steve, we both slowly made our way down to him as the carrier shook even more. "Gotta jump."

Letting go of the ledge, I groaned as I landed on the ground with Steve doing the same. The soldier glanced at us as he grunted again, trying to push the metal off. Steve looked at me and pointed to the other side of the soldier. "OVer there."

I got to the other side as Steve kneeled on the glass. Then the carrier slammed into a building causing us two to fall back. Getting back up, I kneeled next to the soldier's head as Steve and I started to push up on the metal. He started to wiggle before he grabbed onto my upper thigh with his metal arm, grunting as he did so.

He pulled himself out and we let go of the metal, it crashing back down to the glass. "Grace!" I heard Steve yell before a metal fist came down on my face, knocking me clean out. 

_"Come on." Bucky whispered as he pulled me into the forest. Glancing back at the campsite, I turned back to him._

_"Bucky, they're gonna stop putting us on watch together if they catch us again." I warned him as he shoved me against a tree._

_"I don't care as long as I get to do this."_ _He said before placing his lips over mine._

My brain finally came to and realized that this was just a dream, not a reality. My eyes flickered open as I felt the Helicarrier rumble again.

"Then finish it." Steve's voice reached me and that's when I moved my head, seeing the soldier kneeling over Steve with his metal fist raised. "Because I'm with you to the end of the line." 

Slowly crawling to them from where I was, leaving a blood trail as I did so. Hearing something break, I glanced up and saw it. "Bucky!"

The soldier jerked back at the sound of my voice and noticed me lying closer to them than he remembered. The huge piece of metal hit near them as one hit near me. My body was jerked off the broken glass and into the air. 

Glancing up at the ruined Helicarrier, I saw that he actually held on this time. Him staring down as both Steve and I fell to the river below. Once my body hit the water, it was like a shock wave. My brain ripped itself away from this reality into another. 

_Water rushing was the first thing I heard as I came too. Then the next thing I noticed was my body was freezing. With my eyes flickering open, I saw that I was laying in the snow with my legs in the rushing river behind me._

_"Bucky?" I whispered out, my voice barely there. When my eyes finally came clear, I saw something lying on the ground not far. With my legs frozen like icebergs, I somehow crawled to that something on the ground. "Bucky?"_

_I reached up and moved away his hair from his face. Grabbing ahold of his jacket, I pulled myself up to lean against his stomach, not noticing that something was missing. "Bucky?"_

_He let out a small groan as I touched my hand to his fae. It was probably freezing from laying in the snow for who knows how long. While pushing his hair back, I finally noticed the red in the snow by his head. My eyes followed to where it led..."Oh god."_

_Half of his left arm was gone, just above the elbow and blood was still leaking out. "Graceee." Snapping my eyes up to him, his eyes twitched before I heard something else behind us._

_"Over here!" An accented voice called as a man appeared around a bend. But that man wasn't one of ours. As he walked closer, I pulled out a knife and swung it at him. He dodged it and slammed a gun down on my head, me blacking out over Bucky's body._

A hand smoothing across my face was what caused me to come to. When my eyes opened, I saw the soldier slowly standing to his feet next to me. He glanced around before his eyes landed on me, staring at him as the sounds of sirens reached my ears; forcing him to glanced around again.

"Go." His head snapped down to me. His eyes flickered to a passed out Steve next to me then back to me before slowly retreating into the forest behind him. 

"I'll find you again."


	15. The Brownie Points

Music is what woke me up the next time. Frowning, I opened my eyes slowly and they landed on Sam. He was sitting in a chair, which was between Steve and I, reading a magazine. 

"On your left." Steve grunted out as he noticed Sam at the same time I did. Sam glanced at Steve as he went back to sleep then at me as I laughed, gasping in pain a second later.

"Yeah, I wouldn't recommend laughing for a few days. You had a collapsed lung from a bullet." Sam whispered as he reached over to grab my hand. 

"Great," I sarcastically said. "What I always wanted."

Sam glanced at Steve then back to me before leaning closer to me. "I know what you did."

"What?" My eyes closed slightly but opened back up once he said that.

He turned back to Steve, probably to make sure he was fully sleeping before turning back. "I know you hid something in the bookcase."

"What?"

"I didn't say anything cause I kind of figured you didn't want him," He cocked his head back towards Steve. "To know. Whatever you got hidden, I'll keep it that way."

"Still don't know what you're talkin about." 

Once he was gone, I turned on the news and saw Nat's face. "Agent, you should know that there are some on this committee who feel, given your service record, both for this country and against it, that you belong in a petitionary. Not mouthing off on Capitol Hill."

"You're not going to put me in a prison. You're not going to put any of us in prison. You know why? Because you need us. Yes, the world is a vulnerable place and yes, we help make it that way. But we're also the ones best qualified to defend it. So if you want to arrest me, arrest me. You'll know where to find me." Nat stood and went to leave before she was called out again.

"And what about Ms. Donovan? We saw an empty file on Hydra's database you released. Anything on that? Was she apart of this group as well?" Another asked.

"It's empty. It was like that when I saw it and it stayed the same when I released it. And no, she wasn't apart of the group. She was a captive to them. We'll never know what they fully did to her in her captivity but all we know is that she is recovering from what they did. And it's an exceptionally long road for her but no, she is not apart of Hydra. She is no longer under their control either. And she is damn sure it stays that way. She's lost so much because of it."

On that day, she earned more brownie points from me.

* * *

Standing at the grave, I just wanted to laugh. Nicholas J. Fury stared back up at me from the headstone and all I wanted to do was laugh.

"So, you've experience this sort of thing before." Fury said as he walked up behind the three of us, standing by Sam,

"You get used to it." I uttered as he stared down at his own headstone.

"We've been data mining Hydra's files. Looks like a lot of rats didn't go down with the ship. I'm headed to Europe tonight. Wanted to ask if you'd come." Fury asked, glancing at Steve then to me. 

"There's something we got to do first." Steve answered as he stared at me, me nodding to him.

"How about you, Wilson? Could use a man with your abilities." Fury then turned to Sam. 

Sam flicked his head over to me then back to Fury. "I'm more of a soldier than a spy."

"Alright then," Fury shook Sam's hand. Then Steve's before turning to me. I just gave him a smile. "Anybody asks for me, tell them they can find me right here."

"You should be honored. That's about as close as he gets to saying thank you." Nat walked up as Fury walked away. 

"Not going with him?" I asked as I moved closer to her, noticing the file in her hand.

"No."

"Not staying here." Steve stated, also taking in her expression.

"Nah. I blew all my covers. I gotta go figure out a new one." She responded, smiling. 

"That might take a while." Steve told her.

"I'm counting on it," She paused. "That thing you asked for, I called in a few favors from Kiev. Will you do me a favor? Call that nurse."

She handed over the file to Steve. "She's not a nurse."

"And you're not a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent." I muttered to him. He glared at me before turning back to Nat. 

"What was her name again?" Steve asked. 

"Sharon. She's nice." Nat kissed his cheek before turning to me. "Be careful. You might not want to pull on that thread."

"You find anything?" I asked, shoving my hands into my jacket. She would know what I was really asking.

She shook her head before touching my shoulder, walking away. Steve opened the file and the first thing I noticed a photo of Bucky's face in a cyro with a grayed-out photo of him pinned near the bottom. Reaching up, I snatched it from the file.

It was mine to begin with.

"You're going after him." Sam stated as he came up from behind us.

"You don't have to come with us." I stated to him, still staring down at the photo in my hands.

"I know. I can't let you have all the fun. When do we start?"


	16. The Princess

Flipping through the pages of this book, I still could only pick up on a few things. I knew that this book gets into full detail about my seventy years' worth of torture. Now I just wish I was able to read it, to learn what I have done.

Glancing at a sleeping Peggy, I thought back to the flash drive. It had been destroyed when I had landed in the water of the Potomac. So, this black book was the only thing besides my damaged memories that I had left. 

A loud boom next to my ear drew me out of yesterday's memories and back into reality. Grabbing a hold of the truck, I aimed behind us as Clint aimed upwards. Shooting as we did, one went down. A man on a hover vest came up next to us and Nat kicked him, knocking him into a tree.

I punched the one away from me as Stark flew ahead of us while Clint shot at the truck beside us. Carefully climbing out of the truck, I jumped onto the one next to us, taking out the driver as I did so. Shoving his body out of the seat, I took reign of the vehicle before separating from the other two.

Dodging trees, I rammed into the truck in front of me as it chased after Steve on his motorbike. Aiming my gun, I took out the driver causing that truck to slam into a tree; the other three in the truck flying out. I continued following behind Nat, slamming the front of my truck into the back of the one behind her.

Steve rode up next to me, taking out one of the flyers as they flew up next to me before I opened the door. He held out his hand as I jumped from the truck to the back of the bike, landing on the seat with both of my feet. Grabbing onto his shoulders, he flew over the barricade before landing on the snow covered ground.

Stark flew off as Steve drove closer to the bigger blockade with me still standing on the bike, taking out men left and right of us. "Shit!"

I let out a laugh at Stark's curse before Steve spoke. "Language. Jarvis, what's the view from upstairs?"

"The central building is protected by some kind of energy shield. Strucker's technology is well beyond any other Hydra base we've taken." Jarvis answered through the comms. 

Crouching behind Steve's head as a blast went over mine, Thor answered. "Loki's scepter must be here. Strucker couldn't mount this defense without it. At long last."

Grabbing the shield off his back, I blocked the blast that came at us before throwing a grenade at a vehicle as we passed it. Once it exploded, another truck was next in line for a grenade.

"At long last is lasting a little long, boys." Nat commented as I heard gunfire echo from her comm into mine.

"Yeah, I think we lost the element of surprise." Clint responded back. Of course, we have. We're the Avengers, we never have the element of surprise.

"Wait a second, no one is going to deal with the fact that Cap just said 'language'." Stark joked as Steve drove alongside the force field.

"I know." He commented as I saw that we were coming up on a truck and I squeezed his shoulders before backflipping off. Landing on one of my knees, Steve flipped over the front of the bike before tossing it at the truck coming towards us. "Just slipped out."

"And that's why we can't have nice things." I muttered as I pointed to the destroyed bike. He jerked around and cocked an eyebrow at me.

"Get your ass back over to the shield. Once it goes down, I need you in taking out as many as you can." He ordered, his face scrunching together. 

I saluted him, jokingly. "I aye, Captain." He glared at me before I ran off, laughing. 

Running along the shield, I watched for any spots of weakness. Whenever there was a shield like this, there was always a weak point. 

"Sir, the city is taking fire." Jarvis commented. 

"Well, we know Strucker isn't gonna worry about mass civilian casualties, Stark." I added in as I slid on my knees, taking out two agents running towards me. 

"You're right. Send in the Iron Legion." Stark answered. Firing two shots, I spun around seeing no more men in my area. Glancing over, I noticed a set of train tracks a little ways away. Running over, my eyes followed it as it led all the way back to the research base.

Gotcha ya. Weak spot identified. 

As I started running along the tracks, something whipped past me, moving my hair off my right shoulder. Jerking to a stop, I turned to see what had jet pass me but I saw nothing. I frowned in confusion.

Then something grabbed my wrist and twisted it causing me to flip over onto my back. I growled as I got up, jerking around before I paused. Closing my eyes, I focused on the sounds around me. 

Gunfire, explosions, the trees swaying from said explosions, but I heard it. 

It started off in the distance before it turned, coming straight for me. Smirking, I waited for a moment before kicking myself up and off a tree, jumping over the thing that was barely there. My fingers grazed what felt like hair before I landed on the ground.

Kneeling with one hand in the snow, I heard it again. The rushing of feet against the ground. Not noticeable with human ears but with superhuman, you could still barely make out the sound. I stayed kneeling, waiting for it to plow into me, which it did. 

Looking my legs around its feet, I felt it stumbled and land on the ground. I quickly got up and ran to see what had decided to act like a road runner. Placing my foot on the man's chest, he turned his eyes up to me. 

"Didn't see that one coming, did I, princess?' His Sokovian accent caught my attention which had me frowning. 

"No, you didn't." I replied, leaning a little closer to him so I could memorize his face. My eyes flicked from his icy blonde hair to his bright blue eyes. 

"You going to let me go, princess?" He joked, his palms up on the snow.

Pressing a boot into his neck, I put light pressure on it before speaking. "Call me princess one more time and you'll be Sleeping Beauty."

He let out a barely there laugh before focusing back on me. "Well, princess..." I pressed harder down on his throat, cutting him off. He responded by grabbing my ankle before I was suddenly on my back, with him. His voice echoing around me, "I gotta run."

Growling in annoyance, I yanked myself up and brushed off the snow from my back before continuing down the tracks.

"We have enhancement in the field." Steve informed us. I didn't answer because I already knew that but didn't want to get reprimanded by forgetting to say something. 

"Clint's hit." Nat said as I reached a little bridge, seeing an entrance to the base. "Someone want to deal with that bunker?"

I heard a loud roar echo around the forest before slowly walking in. "Stark, we really need to get inside." Steve complained.

"I'm closing in." Stark stated.

"So am I." I added on but no one responded. Okay, guess I'm on my own for now.

"Jaw bridge is down, people." Stark informed everyone as I made it to a staircase, leading up into the building.

"Clint's hit pretty bad, guys." Nat said before I turned down the comm almost completely down so I didn't give myself away.

Creeping up the last step of the first staircase, I heard men talking and feet running around. Hearing shots being fired a few floors up, I snuck past the open room with men in it before almost running up the new few flights of stairs. 

I jerked to a stop when I heard feet running down the steps ahead of me. Raising my gun higher, Strucker appeared in front of me before suddenly stopping as well.

"Well, looky here. Hydra's old toy has come back to one of her many homes." He spoke as he took a step back up the stairs.

"Stop." I ordered him as I moved up two steps, keeping my gun trained up and on him. "Just give up, Strucker. You have nowhere to go unless you want a bullet in you."

"See, that's where you're wrong, Красного." He mentioned that stupid name that always brought up some horrible memories but not this time, this mission was too important for that to happen.

While he spoke, he kept inching back up the stairs with me following a few feet behind. I was on the last step before I spoke. "How's that?"

"Because I got you right where I wanted you. Один, отказался от, ребенок.." He started to say before my mind started to go blank. Then a woman with long brown hair stepped out of the shadows and I focused on her. "Do it."

She raised her hand and that's when I noticed red wisps appearing out of thin air before they snapped over to me before disappearing. The force of them knocked me backwards down the stairs.

Tumbling down them, the two slowly disappeared while something else did.

_“Красного, again!” The lady barked at me. Turning away from the person who had a bag over their head, I stared at her._

_"Please, no more." Tears streamed down my face. Her upper lip jerked slightly before she threw down her whip and snatched a gun from the table next to her. She sped walk over to me before pointing the gun at my head._

_"You do it, Красного, or I'll make you wish you did. And we both know you won't like it. Now, do it." She ordered, jerking me back around to face the person kneeling on the hardwood floor._

_Crying from the person caught my attention once we turned back to them. Feeling her pressing the gun deeper into my side, I raised my hand that held my own gun. As I tried to aim at the person, my hand started to shake._

_Feeling the gun move from my side, I saw it out of the corner of my eye. "Mama, no!" I tried to take the gun from her but she backhanded me with it. Falling hard to the ground, I could feel blood dripping out of my nose and mouth. The sound of the gun firing made me jump back before the thump of the body hitting the floor._

_Her heels clicked against the floor as I backed up to the wall. With my back against it, I turned my head up at her before flinching my eyes away from her. She was pissed, you could feel the rage seeping out of her._

_"Madam?" A man's voice echoed through the room. Glancing over to the door, the man stood with his arms behind his back._

_"Put her back under." She ordered causing my stare to snap back to her._

_"Please, no. I'll be good. I promise." I pleaded, clenching hard onto my own fingers._

_She leaned down and snatched my jaw between her fingers, her nails biting into my skin. "What did I tell you? Good girls do as I say and get rewarded. I told you to kill him, which you did not. You are bad and bad girls get put under. Maybe in a few years, you've learned your lesson."_

_She let go of my jaw before straightening as I cried. "Please, I don't want to back under. I don't want to be cold again._

_She stared at me as she watched my tears fall down my face. "Maybe you should have thought about that before you disobeyed me," She turned back to the man. "Put her back in cryo for a few more years. And keep the Soldat away from it. You know how angry he gets when he see her in there."_

_The man nodded before moving over to me. I scrambled away from him before he reached out and snatched onto my ponytail. I cried as he started to drag me along the floor and out of the room._

Someone shaking me had my eyes snapping open, my legs jerking up and around the person's neck as I could still hear my own cries echoing in my ears. Flipping them down behind me, I pulled myself up with my legs still locked around their neck. Raising my fist, I paused. "Steve?"


	17. The Maybe

Even thought I was huddled in the corner of the jet, I could still feel that dream or memory creeping in the back corner of my mind. Steve glanced over at me from where he was leaning over Clint, checking to see if I was still in this reality. Moving away from Clint, he walked over to me, crouching down to my level.

"You okay?" He asked, moving a piece of hair out of my face but not before I flinched away from his hand. Leaning into his hand, his rough skin smoothed over my soft cheek.

"No." I whispered. Thor glanced at me from his spot near Loki's scepter.

"Thor? Report on the Hulk." Nat asked, kneeling by Bruce.

"The gates of Hell are full with the screams of his victims," Thor said before Nat glared at him, even causing Steve to glance back at him. "But not the screams of the dead, of course. Ah, the wounded screams, mainly whimpering, great deal of complaining and tales of sprain deltoids and the gout."

"Hey, Banner. Dr. Cho on her way in from Souls, is it okay if she sets up in your lab?" Stark asked from the pilot seat.

"Uh, yeah. She knows her way around." Banner replied, not moving from where he was sitting.

Steve moved his hand away from my cheek and touch my right hand that was currently crushing the fingers of the left. He smoothed his fingers over them before wrenching my hand open. "Stop it." He whispered. 

"Feels good, yeah? I mean you've been after this thing since S.H.I.E.L.D. collapsed. Not that I have enjoyed our little raiding parties." Stark said as he walked towards us, stopping by Thor.

"No, this brings it to a close." Thor replied.

"As soon as we find out what else it's been used for. And I just don't mean weapons. Since when is Strucker capable of human enhancement?" Steve asked after standing up to be by Thor.

"Banner and I will give it a once over before it goes back to Asgard. Is that cool with you?" Stark asked Thor which he nodded in agreement. "Just a few days until the farewell party. You're staying, right?"

"Yes, of course. Victory should be honored with rebels." Thor answered, smiling.

"Yeah, I love rebels. Captain?" Stark turned his head to Steve.

"Hopefully, this puts an end to the Chitauri and Hydra so yes, rebels." Steve answered.

Stark nodded before jerking around to face me, where I was still huddled in the corner near them, watching as they spoke. "What about you, miss Grace? You like to party?"

Turning my head away from them, I leaned it on my knees and stared at the window of the jet as my ears picked up whispering from Steve. "Have Cho give her a once over. Strucker did something. I haven't seen her like this in a while, not since..."

"Barnes?" Steve must have nodded cause I felt another pair of eyes on me. "Yeah, I'll make sure Cho looks her over."

* * *

We landed and they quickly got Clint out as Hill walked up the ramp. "Lab's all set up, boss."

"Oh, actually, he's the boss." Stark said pointing to Steve as he pulls me out of my little corner, with resistance from me. "I just pay for everything and design everything. Make everyone look cooler."

"What's the word on Strucker?" Steve asked as he wrapped his arm around my waist, forcing me to lean against him. Hill's eyebrows twitched in concern before answering.

"NATOS got him."

He pulled me along as Hill started to walk with us. "The two enhanced?"

"Wanda and Pietro Maximoff. Twins. Orphaned at ten when a shell collapsed their apartment building. Sokovia had a rough history. It's nowhere special but it's on the way to everywhere special." Hill explained as Steve kept me huddled against his side, walking into the tower and around towards the elevator.

"Their abilities?" Steve asked. 

"He's got increased metabolism and improved thermal homeostasis. Her thing is neuroelectric interfacing, telekinesis, mental manipulation." Steve stopped and gave her a look. "He's fast and she's weird." She explained further as Steve press the button on the elevator. 

"Agreed. File says they volunteered for Strucker's experiments. It's nuts." Hill continued as she watch Steve tug me into the elevator.

"Right. What kind of monster would let a German scientist experiment on them to protect their country?" Steve asked. You, my father, ring any bells?

"We're not at war, Captain." Hill reminded him.

"They are." The elevator doors closed and Steve glanced down at me. He reached up and smoothed my hair back as the doors reopened. He reached down and swung his arm under my legs, carrying me bridal style.

Opening my bedroom door, he laid me down on the bed after moving the blankets to the side. Moving the blankets back over me, he sat down on the edge. "What happened?"

I didn't answer, just rolling away from him. He sighed before reaching over and rolled me back to face him. "Why are you shutting me out? You never used to do this. I just want to help with whatever is going on in that brain of yours."

Out of the corner of my eyes, Bucky's old photo that I had placed in a frame on the bedside table caught my eye. It was a good thing I had hidden the black book before I left because I had placed it next to the frame. 

"You wouldn't understand." I whispered out. He frowned before he noticed that I wasn't even looking at him. 

"If you don't tell me, I can't." He responded back. He waited for me to answer but I didn't. He let out a frustrated sigh before standing, placing his hands on his hips. "I'm sending Cho up once she's done with Barton." He walked towards the door, saying something as he closed it. 

"Maybe she can get you to talk."


	18. The Worthy

Hearing the music and laughter from down the stairs made me want to go back up in my room and huddle in my bed. The last few days have been rough, this was actually the first time I have been out of my room since the run in with Strucker and one of the enhanced.

Pulling my hood down off my hair, I turned to see my reflection in the mirror. What I was wearing wasn't party attire. Black cropped hoodie paired with a tight black skirt with my thigh holster sticking out of the bottom. Its straps led down to thigh high boots. Biting my lower lip, I slid my thumbs through the sleeve before walking down the stairs to my right.

Sam and Steve turned once they heard my feet hitting the steps, Sam leaning against the pool table, holding a pool cue. "Oh, Grace, looking nice."

I gave Sam a small smile as Steve just laughed, pulling me into his once I was close enough. Him leaning down so his lips reached my ear. "Couldn't leave the knives upstairs?"

Sam leaned down and hit one of the balls, that's when I noticed some men turning their heads in my direction. I grabbed Steve's cue and leaned down. "Not at all. Girl's gotta be prepared." I hit the ball, sinking it into the pocket.

"Come on, that ain't fair." Sam complained as I finished up the game in thirty seconds. I smirked at his unhappiness.

After a few games with Sam, which I won all six, I went up the stairs to the balcony to watch the party from above. Sipping on my drink, I watched as Thor took a drink out of his Asgardian wine.

Flickering my eyes around the party, I thought how Bucky would have loved this. All his stories about parties and dances he went to; he would have had made a hell of this night. God, finding you is a whole lot harder than I thought but I'm keeping my promise.

"Sounds like a hell of a fight. Sorry I missed it." Hearing Sam's voice close by, I leaned back and saw that they were walking up the stairs.

"If I had known it was gonna be a firefight, I absolutely would have called." Steve apologized. 

"No, no. I'm not actually sorry. I'm just trying to sound tough. I'm very happy chasing cold leads on our missing person case. Avenging is your world. Your world is crazy." Sam commented as he stopped next to me. 

"Be it ever so humble." I whispered causing Steve to glance down at me.

"You find a place in Brooklyn yet?" Sam asked, leaning against the railing like I was. 

"I don't think I can afford a place in Brooklyn." Steve replied. I smiled, home is home, no matter how hidden they are.

"Well home is home, you know?" Sam told him. Sam's hand smoothed over my back as I snapped my head over to him. Steve mumbled something before walking back down the stairs to Thor. "Any new leads you wanna give me?"

"I might, not sure if it's even worth given over." I mumbled, taking a sip of my drink.

"Well, it's worth a try. He's hiding rather good here, anything could help. Wish he would leave something behind or something." He complained causing me to smile. 

"He's a trained assassin, knows how to hide in plain sight like me," I paused. "You really think he's gonna leave something behind when he's not just running from us?"

"Right but I'll keep wishing. He's a hell of a man to find." He complained again. Hell of a man, he is.

I laughed at his complaint. "He is one hell of a man. Why do you think I fell in love?"

He gave me small smile before turning away but cocking his head towards his shoulder. "Well tell your lover that he needs to leave more leads before I keel over."

* * *

"You should let me borrow this." Nat said a little while later after the guests were gone. Her hand smoothed over the sleeve, feeling the fabric.

"Ha, and never see it again? Hell no." I replied as she gave me a glare before letting go of my sleeve. I smiled at her as I pulled up my hood, leaning against Barton's shoulder.

"But it's a trick." He yelled out to Thor who was across from us. Thor turned to us, his head moving down since Clint and I were sitting on the floor instead of the couch.

"No, no, it's much more than that." He replied to Barton laughing.

"Ah, whosoever be he worthy shall haveth the power. Whatever, man! It's a trick." Clint joked, rolling his eyes.

"Please, be my guest." Thor granted as he gestured towards his hammer which was on the table in front us.

"Really?" Clint asked as he went to stand, forcing me off his shoulder.

"Oh, this is gonna be beautiful." Rhodey said, sitting on the arm of the couch by Stark.

"Clint, you've had a tough week. We won't hold it against you if you can't get it up." Stark joked and we all laughed, me throwing something at him which he barely moved away from.

"You know I've seen this before, right?" Clint said and Thor nodded. He grabbed the hammer and grunted, trying to pick it up. "I still don't know how you do it!"

"Smell the silent judgement?" Stark commented, smirking.

"Please, Stark, by all means." Clint gestured towards him.

Stark clears his throat as he stood up. He unbuttoned his jacket as he stepped over my legs to get to the hammer. "Never one to shrink from an honest challenge. It's physics. Right, so if I lift it, I then rule Asgard?"

"Yes, of course." Thor confirmed, a smile on his face.

"I will be reinstituting prima notcta." Stark grunted as he tried to lift. "I'll be right back." He goes to get an Iron hand and tried with. Even him and Rhodey couldn't even do it together. Then Bruce tried it before trying to make a joke about hulking out, which none of found funny then Steve stood.

"Go ahead, Steve. No pressure." I commented as he got up, rolling up his sleeves.

"Come on, Cap." Stark encouraged.

Steve wrapped his hands around the handle before starting to lift up. The hammer grunted as it shifted slightly before Steve changed his grip before trying again. Thor laughed as Steve let go of the handle, him sitting back down before Banner gestured towards Nat and me.

"Widow, Sparrow?"

"Oh, no, no. That's not a question I need answered." Nat said as I shook my head. Definitely knew I wasn't so why try?

"All deference to Man Who Wouldn't Be King but it's rigged." Stark said as he grabbed another beer from the bar.

"You bet your ass." Clint cursed, also grabbing another.

"Steve, he said a bad language word." Hill pointed out, pointing at Clint. I laughed as Steve sighed next to me, his head falling down, his eyes locking with mine when I glanced back.

"Did you tell everyone about that?" He asked, I shrugged before bringing my glass to my lips, smirking. Maybe.

"The handle's imprinted, right? Like a security code. Whosoever is carrying Thor's fingerprints is, I think, the literal translation." Stark throw out the theory.

"Yes. It's a very, very interesting theory. I have a simpler one." Thor said, getting up from his seat on the couch. He grabbed his hammer, flipping it. "You're all not worthy."

Just after he said that, a high pitched noise filled the room causing us all to groan. I flinched back as it hit my ear causing me to rub my face against Steve's leg. "Worthyyy." Something grunted out as footsteps came from near the entrance of the elevator. 

Grabbing Steve's hand as he stood, he helped me up as I took notice of the half destroyed Iron Legion bot in front of. "No," It turned to us. "How could you be worthy? You're all killers."

"Stark." Steve grunted out, getting his attention.

"Jarvis." Stark spoke.

"I'm sorry, I was sleeping. Or I was a dream." The bot stated.

"Reboot Legionnaire OS. We got a buggy suit." Stark muttered as he pressed on his data pad.

"There was this terrible noise. And I was tangled in...in...strings. I had to kill the other guy. He was a good guy." The bot mumbled as it glanced down.

"You killed someone?" I asked, glancing over to Steve in concern then back to the bo.

"Wouldn't have been my first call. But down in the real world, we're face with ugly choices." The bot added.

"Who sent you?" Thor questioned.

"'I see a suit of armor around the world.'" Stark's voice echoed around the room being played from the bot. 

"Ultron." Banner spoke, whipping around to Stark in shock.

"In the flesh. Or, no, not yet. Not this chrysalis. But I'm ready." I slowly turned to Steve as he glanced at me, giving me a nod. "I'm on a mission."

"What mission?" Nat asked it.

"Peace in our time." Ultron said before three bots broke through the windows behind him.

Steve reacted quickly by kicking up the coffee table causing a bot to hit it. The table came back and knocked us both back and onto the floor. Getting up, Steve ran up to one before jumping for it. It flew back and Steve hit the wall before the bot reached back, yanking him off and onto the floor.

I ran towards it, jumping up on the table before onto the bot. I got my arms and legs around its front before it started to try and throw me of. It tried shooting at Nat and Banner as they ran up the stairs to keep Banner away from the fight; to prevent another Hulk incident. I quickly reached down and pulled out my knife from my high holster, jabbing it into its neck.

It started to jerk around, trying to avoid the knife but I kept stabbing at the wires; oil splattering on my face as I did so. It soon fluttered in the air before completely dropping to the ground. I landed in a pile of glass as the last one was taken by Steve's shield.

Clint helped me off the floor as we turned back to Ultron. "That was dramatic. I'm sorry, I know you mean well. You just didn't think it through. You want to protect the world but you don't want it to change. How is humanity saved if it's not allowed to evolve? With these? These puppets. There's only one path to peace. The Avengers' extinction."

Thor threw his hammer in anger by his words and it crushed the bot to pieces. As the light started to fade from it, it started to say something. "I had strings but now I'm free." 


	19. The Joke

Sitting on the counter in Stark's lab, I tried to wipe away the oil from my face from the Iron Legion while Bruce spoke. "All of our work is gone. Ultron cleared out, used the internet as an escape hack."

"He's been in everything. Files, surveillance, probably knows more about us than we know about each other." Nat said as she turned to face us. 

"He's in your files, he's in the internet. What if he decides to access something a little more exciting?" Rhodey asked everyone. 

"Nuclear codes." Hill said, glancing up from pulling glass out of her foot.

"Nuclear codes." Rhodey repeated. "Look, we need to make some calls. Assuming we still can."

"Nukes? He said he wanted us dead." Nat stated, reminding all of us.

"He didn't say dead," Everyone glanced at me as I threw down the towel I was using to the table. "He said extinct. There's a difference."

"He also said he killed somebody." Clint brought up, leaning against the railing behind me.

"There wasn't anyone else in the building." Hill stated. Stark moved away from the destroyed bot on the table to the center of the room.

"Yes, there was." He motioned the tablet in his hand forward and an orange hologram came up, scattered and broken orange pieces everywhere.

Bruce walked closer to it, staring at Stark. "This is insane."

"Jarvis was the first line of defense. He would have shut Ultron down, it makes sense." Steve added on, his arms crossing.

"No. Ultron couldn't have assimilated Jarvis. This is...isn't strategy. This is rage." Bruce explained. Thumping of boots caught my attention before Thor came stomping in, reaching for Stark.

He wrapped a hand around Stark's throat and lifted him in the air. "Wow, wow, wow." Rhodey quickly said, standing.

"It's going around." Clint slightly joked. I slapped his chest slightly as Thor moved back towards the wall with Stark still in the air.

"Come on, use your words, buddy." Stark huffed out, his hands around Thor's wrist.

"I have more than enough words to describe you, Stark." Thor responded.

"Thor. The Legionnaire." Steve's voice boomed in the room, getting his attention. Thor dropped Stark before turning to Steve.

"Trail went cold about a hundred miles out but he's heading North and it has the scepter. Now we have to retrieve it, again." Thor complained, glaring at Stark.

"The genie is out of that bottle. Clear and present that it's Ultron." Nat butted in.

"I don't understand. You built this program. Why is it trying to kill us?" Dr. Cho asked, turning to us from standing by the bot.

Stark laughed as Bruce shook his head at him. Thor walked closer to him. "You think this is funny?"

Stark turned to him. "No. It's probably not. Right? Is this really terrible? Is it so...it is. It is so terrible."

"This could have been avoided if you hadn't played with something you don't understand." Thor told him.

"No, I'm sorry. It is funny. It's who gets why..."

"Tony, maybe this may not be the time." Bruce interrupted Stark.

"Really?" Stark whipped around to him. "That's it? You just roll over, show your belly, every time somebody snarls."

"Only when I have created a murder bot." Bruce threw back at him.

"We didn't. We weren't even close. Were we close to an interface?" Tony asked with Bruce furiously nodding in answer.

"Well you did something. And you did it here. The Avengers were supposed to be different than S.H.I.E.L.D." I commented as Steve's eyes flickered to me. 

"Anybody remember when I carried a nuke through a wormhole?" Tony asked and we all shook our heads, shrugging. "Save New York? Recall that? A hostile alien army came charging through a hole in space and we're standing three hundred feet below it. We're the Avengers. We can bust arms dealers all day but that up there, that's the endgame. How are you guys planning on beating that?"

"Together." Steve answered. Tony moved towards him.

"We'll lose." He responded. I walked forward and placed a hand on Tony's arm causing him to turn his head towards me.

"Then we'll do that together too."

Steve nodded before speaking. "Thor's right. Ultron is calling us out and I'd like to find him before he's ready for us. The world's a big place, start making it smaller."

* * *

The elevator door opened the next day as Hill spoke. "He's all over the globe. Robotics labs, weapons facilities, jet propulsion labs. Reports of a metal man or men, coming in and emptying the place."

As she spoke, my foot slid on a piece of glass before I reached the stairs, following them. "Fatalities?"

"Only when engaged. Mostly guys left in a fugue state going on about old memories, worst fears, and 'something too fast to see'." Hill answered my question.

"Maximoffs." Steve stated. "That makes sense he'd go to them. They have someone in common."

"Not anymore." All three of us paused on the steps as Maria pulled up a photo, turning it to us. Strucker's dead body leaned against a wall with PEACE written on the wall next to him.

"Great, just perfect." I moved past them, taking the tablet from Maria in doing so. I walked into the computer room as Nat typed away at the computer. I handed the tablet to Thor as he reached for it. 

"What's this?" Stark asked as he noticed the exchange.

"A message." Steve said as Thor slammed the tablet against Stark's chest. "Ultron killed Strucker."

"And he did a Banksy at the crime scene, just for us." Stark joked and I rolled my eyes. Never takes anything seriously.

"This is a smoke screen. Why send a message when you've just given a speech?" Nat asked as she glanced from me to Steve.

"Strucker knew something that Ultron wanted us to miss." Steve stated.

"Yeah, I bet he...yeah. Everything we had on Strucker's been erased." Nat added in as the computer beeped.

"Not everything." I sighed out, remembering all the debriefing files locked away.

Steve slammed down another box next to me as I flipped open the lid. "Known associates. Baron Strucker had a lot of friends."

"Well, these people are all horrible." Bruce said, causing my eyes to flicker to the file in his hands. 

"Wait. I know that guy." Tony said, taking the file from Bruce. "From back in the day. He operates off the African coast. Black market arms." Steve gives him a look and I let out a small laugh. "There are conventions. Alright? You meet people. I didn't sell him anything. He was talking about finding something new, a game-changer. It was all very Ahab."

Thor held up a photo and pointed at something in it. "This?"

"Ah, it's a tattoo. I don't think he had it." Tony said, barely glancing at the picture.

"Those are tattoos, this is a brand." Thor continued. Bruce rolled over to the computer in the room and scanned the photo. I moved to watch over his shoulder as the symbols flickered over the screen. 

"Oh yeah. It's a word in an African dialect meaning 'thief'. In a much less friendly way." Bruce explained, reading off the screen.

"What dialect?' Steve asked.

"Wakanada?" Bruce stuttered out, completely wrong.

"Wakanda." I whispered and he heard it, repeating it.

"If this guy got out of Wakanda with some of their trade goods..." Tony started to say.

"I thought your father said that Grace got the last of it." Steve added on, catching on. My ears perked up from the mention of my name. Everyone glanced at me besides the two.

"I don't follow. What comes out of Wakanda?" Bruce asked, standing up from the chair. 

"The strongest metal on Earth." I spoke up as I caught sight of the shield behind Steve. Steve glanced at it before turning to Stark. 

"Where is this guy now?"


	20. The Sickness of Red

"Are you still not going to tell me?" Steve poked again as we made our way out of the jet. I smiled as I tightened the strap on my stomach. 

"I already told you, remember?" I paused, flickering my eyes to him. "I have a very convincing smile."

"And that leads me to believe that you stole it." Steve added on. I rolled my eyes but didn't answer and he noticed. "You didn't steal it, did you?"

"Come on, Stevie. You know I didn't." I joked and he glared at the mention of that nickname I had picked up the last few months to tease him.

"No, I don't."

I laughed quietly before separating from him. Sneaking into a not so abandoned ship on the salvage yard was hard; it was making sure you didn't get lost in the countless hallways. Always great fun, especially now in the dark.

Hearing glass shattering, I followed and ended up right where I was supposed to be. Laying low behind a crate, I watched as Ultron and Klaue lowered a shelf and my eyes widened.

"Upon this rock, I will build my church. Vibranium." Ultron said before chucking a vial of vibranium to Pietro. Everyone had thought that the last vibranium was in Steve's shield but it wasn't. I knew the Wakanda King wasn't lying when he said that he had more but I didn't want to ask for more than he gave me. It was a hefty price that I had paid for what he did give me.

"You know, it came at great personal cost. It's worth billions." Klaue stated.

Ultron chuckles before glancing up. "Now so are you. It's all under your dummy holdings. Finance is so weird. But I always say keep your friends rick and your enemies rich and wait to find out which is which."

"Stark." Klaue mumbled but I heard it.

"What?" Ultron asked, confused.

"Tony Stark used to say that. To me. You're one of his." Klaue accused. Hmmm, so very wrong you are.

"What? I'm not...I'm not. You think I'm one of Stark's puppets? His hollow men? I mean, look at me. Do I look like Iron Man? Stark is nothing!" Ultron yelled before slicing Klaue's arm off above the elbow. My eyes widened a bit in shock. Okay, we may have a slight problem. "I'm sorry. I'm...oh. I'm sure that's gonna be okay. I'm sorry. It's just that I don't understand. Don't compare me with Stark!"

He kicked Klaue and that gave me a chance to drop down to the level they were at as Ultron rambled. "Stark is...he's a sickness!"

"Ah, junior." Stark said as he floated down in front of Steve and Thor. "You're gonna break your old man's heart."

"If I have to." Ultron said as he finally noticed me from where I was standing on his side of the catwalk, gun in hand.

"Nobody has to break anything." Thor said.

"Clearly you've never made an omelet." Ultron added on, joking. I rolled my eyes. Still have Stark's stupid jokes.

"He beat me by one second." Tony said, confirming what I was thinking.

"Ah yes. He's funny, Mr. Stark. It's what? Comfortable? Like old times?" Pietro asked, glancing down at the missiles below us.

"This was never my life." Tony stated also taking in the missiles.

"You two can still walk away form this...in handcuffs." I said causing Wanda to cock her head over to me, her eyebrow shooting up.

"Oh, we will, Красного." She mocked. My hand tightened on my gun and she smirked, noticing. 

"I know you've suffered." Steve said as Ultron scoffs.

"Captain America. God's righteous man. Pretending you could live without a war. I can't physically throw up in my mouth but..." Ultron started.

"If you believe in peace, then let us keep it." Thor interrupted.

"I think you're confusing peace, with quiet." Ultron stated, moving closer to them. Once he did, I did the same with both Pietro and Wanda noticing. 

"Uh-huh. What's the vibranium for?" Tony asked as Pietro threw the vial in his hand to the ground like it was nothing.

"I'm glad you asked that because I wanted to take this time to explain my evil plan." Ultron forced Tony closer with a magnetic field while a bot jumped down in front of me. 

I shot at it as it reached for me, quickly ducking as Ultron and Tony almost hit me. The bot grabbed me by my throat and started to push me over the railing. I managed to get my legs around its body, grabbing onto the railing itself.

I flipped over it, letting go of the bot as he went over with me. With one hand still holding the railing, I shot it as it started to float in the air. It powered down as I pulled myself over the railing and back onto the catwalk.

Once my feet hit the grates, I was flipped. I growled as I landed on my back, hearing guns being fired. Getting up, an arrow went past my head before striking a male behind me. Turning, I saw Thor's hammer flying before seeing Pietro letting go of it, landing on a pile of crates.

As he started to get up, I quickly ran over to him as Steve did. He jumped the boy back with his shield and he went flying back onto the crates. "Stay down, kid."

We left the dazed boy as we looked for Thor." Thor, status."

"The girl tried to warp my mind. Take special care. I doubt a human can keep her at bay. Fortunately, I am mighty." Thor stated before his voice trailed off. 

We started to fight a few guys that came up on us before Steve was no longer next to me. Taking down the last man, I glanced around for him, not noticing that something was creeping up around me. "Steve?"

"Who's ever standing, we got to move." Clint's voice echoed in my ear but I didn't quite hear it.

" _Красного!"_

_"Mama!"_

_"No." I whispered as I covered my ears, trying to keep the hidden voices at bay. "I didn't know. Please, I didn't."_

_"How could you?" My eyes snapped up and took in Bucky but this time, he was different. He was dressed like the day we fell. The blue of his jacket dyed the color of blood. His metal arm was no longer there, just what was left of his arm after the fall. It was dripping blood, even though there was a tourniquet around his upper arm. "Why did you let them take us? Why didn't you save us?"_

_"I tried." I cried as he leaned down, grabbing my jaw in his hand. His face was full of anger, more anger than I have ever seen on him._

_"No, you didn't. You thought they were one of us. You...let...them." Every word that came out of his mouth was a hiss, his hand tightening on my jaw. "You could have saved us."_

_"I know. I'm sorry." I whimpered out as I felt bruises forming where his hand was._

_"Look what they did to me." He ordered. I shook my head as he let go of my jaw. "LOOK AT WHAT THEY DID TO ME!"_

_Him yelling caused me to look up at him but he wasn't there. He was in fact strapped down to a table, the sound of the saw reaching my ears. The sound of it hitting severed flesh, then breaking into bone, him screaming out my name. I remember this so well._

_How he went without half an arm for years because of Zola's imprisonment, them sawing at the stump that had already healed over. Zola's freed face, smirking in ratification, knowing he finally got his soldier. Knowing that he was going to change the world._

_The sight of Bucky in a chair, his metal arm gleaming, all new and shiny. A dangerous weapon attached to a man who was so gentle. Two metal arms came over his head and attached themselves to his skull before electric current filled his brain. His screams soon turned into whimpers then to nothing._

_"Don't worry, my little mouse." I flinched as Zola's bloody hand caressed my check, smearing Bucky's blood on it. "You'll be next."_

Feeling someone setting me down had me coming to. Glancing up, Steve kneeled in front of me. He reached up to caress my face but I flinched back, hiding deeper into myself. All I could see was Zola's hand, Bucky's blood, his screams. Steve sighed before sitting across from me in a chair. 

"The news is loving you guys. Nobody else is." Hill's voice reached my ears but I could barely hear it over the screams that still echoed in my head.

Turning away from everyone, I closed my eyes, seeing Bucky's severed arm. I whimpered out with tears slipping down my cheeks. I could feel my body shaking, my hands trembling as I clenched my head. Two arms eloped me and I flinched away from the arm. 

"It's okay, I got you." Steve's voice reached me before I fully shoved my face into his chest. His hand came up, rubbing my back as I somehow crawled into his lap. "It's okay. I have you."


	21. The Little Ones

He never asked. He didn't question. I guess he didn't know what to say. I mean, what could someone do or say when their loved one was left speechless after seeing the horrors that they never remembered til now? All the torture, all the kills, all the horror. I guess you couldn't. Why would you? Knowing if you did, you would only be bringing the horrors back to the victims and I guess that's why he never did...ask to say the least. 

He did keep me huddled to his side as we walked out of the Quinjet and onto a...farm? Why would Clint take us here? Clint led us to the porch before anyone spoke.

"What is this place?" Thor asked as he walked up the porch steps.

"Safe house." Tony answered. Steve's arm tightened around me as Clint opened the door.

"Let's hope." He said, walking in, pulling Nat with him. "Honey? I'm home."

A pregnant woman stepped out from behind a wall and she smiled once she noticed Clint. "Hi. Company. Sorry, didn't call ahead." Clint apologized. 

"Hey." She greeted, kissing him then giving him a hug.

"This is an agent of some kind." Tony said, not convinced that Clint had a life outside of avenging.

"Gentlemen, this is Laura." Clint introduced her.

"I know all of your names." She chuckles, glancing at all of us. Then smaller footsteps came from our left. Then a little girl with a cute blue dress and a boy appeared around the corner.

"Dad!" The girl yelled, making a small smile appear on my face.

"Hi, sweetheart! Hey, buddy. How are you guys doing?" Clint said, hugging them.

"These are smaller agents." Tony mumbled, pointing at them confused.

"Did you bring Auntie Nat?" The little one asked. Clint gasps at the question.

"Why don't you hug her and find out?" Nat said as she moved towards the little girl, with the girl running at her.

"Sorry for barging in on you." Steve's chest rumbled as he spoke, his arm tightening.

"Yeah, we would have called ahead but we were busy having no idea that you existed." Tony complained as he stared at Clint.

"Yeah, well, Fury helped me set this up when I joined. He kept it off S.H.I.E.L.D.'s files. I'd like to keep it that way. I figure it's a good place to lay low." Clint explained before I heard a crunch from behind me. 

Glancing down, I saw Thor pick up his boot to show a crushed Lego house beneath it. He glanced at me and Steve before sweeping it under the chair and it made me smile a little again. The little girl walked over to us and stared up at me. She lifted her arms, indicating that she wanted picked up. 

Letting go of Steve, he cautiously watched as I reached down and picked her up. Her arms encircled my neck as her legs did the same to my waist. Clint also eyes me as I turned and sat down on the couch, holding his child. She leaned back and touched my hair, pulling it out of its braid to mess with it.

"Will you be my auntie too?" She asked, fingering my hair. Glancing over her shoulder, it was obvious Clint had heard. 

He moved over to us, away from Laura and sat down next to me. "Well, if you ask her nicely, maybe she'll want to be."

Lila gave me the most adorable puppy eyes and popped out her bottom lip in a pout. "Please?"

I smiled and bopped her nose. "Who could say no to that face?" She gave me the biggest smile before leaning into my chest and stayed there until she somehow fell asleep.

Holding her like this, it brought up a memory I had long forgotten. A little boy crying in his bed, me standing over him. Him staring at me with fearful eyes while I watched him back with dead ones. I don't know what caused me to turn away to leave him alive but I did. Even though I paid the consequences of not doing it, they still killed him anyway. I took a deep breath and held her closer.

"You're remembering, aren't you?" Clint asked, taking notice as I held his daughter tighter. "Something of the past?"

I breathed in Lila's flowery shampoo before answering. "Yeah..." I trailed off, not wanting to tell him the full truth. How I remembered not just the little boy and murdering his parents, but more. Like Howard and Maria. How could he kill them? How could I just stand there and watch as he did so? How did Bucky get the job done but I didn't?

"How many?" He pushed, placing a hand on my back. He's was trying to be gentle, trying to ease something that I wasn't willingly giving up.

"Too many." 

* * *

After placing Lila in her bed like Clint suggested, he guided me into the bathroom and ordered that I shower. Once he shut the door, I stared at myself in the mirror. What stared back at me wasn't what I wanted to see. What reflected was the old me, dead and soulless eyes. 

Jerking on the water, I climbed in and leaned my head down as the water splashed against the back of my head. I stared down at my toes as the dirty water ran down the drain before closing my eyes, feeling the flashes of a memory behind them.

_Blood splattered on my face as I pulled the knife out of the body that was now on the ground. My eyes swept over the front room as I heard a door clicking shut very faintly. My head snapped over the cabinet where the sound came from. Moving towards the cabinet, I ripped open the doors as the lady inside let out a scream._

_"Please, please." She pleaded as she slid to the floor. Reaching in, she continued to plead as I yanked her out and onto her knees. "Please don't hurt my son. He's just a little boy."_

_A loud pop from behind me silenced her. Letting her arm slid out of my hand as her body hit the ground, I turned and saw the Soldat standing there. His eyes flickered up the stairs and I silently moved up them, the grip on my knife tightening. Opening the door that said the name Jacob, I quietly walked in._

_The door clicking shut had the body in the bed quaking, the blanket moving slightly. Grasping the end of the blanket, I pulled it down with little resistance from the little hands gripping it. The last of the targets appeared as I let go of the blanket. The little brown eyes followed me as I moved around to the side of the bed, in front of the door._

_His little hands gripped the blanket as he continued to stare at me. His eyes flickered over the blood of his father's on my face down to his mother's blood on my hands to the knife which held both his father's and mother's blood. His lip wavered and a tear slipped out as I went to raise my knife but something stopped me._

_His eyes connected with mine as the street light casted off the metal of the knife. Something in his eyes had me stopping. I stood there, staring, not understanding why I stopped. What caused me to stop but something in his eyes caused it. I felt like I've seen that look before but I couldn't place it. Lowering my hand, I angled the knife away from the boy as I smeared blood on his neck to make it look like I completed the mission. Moving back, the boy's fearful eyes continued to watch me as I slowly backed out of the room._

My eyes slowly opened as I finally remembered why I stopped. Why I didn't hurt and kill that five year old boy. He reminded me of something, or someone to be honest. 

Emma. 

His eyes made me think of someone that I couldn't remember at that time. Someone that was so dear to me and somehow he broke through that wall. Broke through countless years of torture, manipulation and missions that nobody had done before. He broke so deep into the soldier's mind and somehow awoken the girl that was hidden so deep and he was saved but only for a few short hours.

He still died, but not by my hand; but by Rumlow's.

Shutting off the water, I stepped out and put on the clothes that Clint had gotten out of the jet for me. Moving out of the bathroom, I quietly slipped back into Lila's room and slid opened the window that was there and climbed up onto the roof. Leaning my arms on my raised knees, I placed my chin down on them; watching Steve and Tony start to chop wood. Even though I was two stories up, I could still hear them.

"Thor didn't say where he was going for answers?" Tony asked, leaning to pick up another log.

"Sometimes my teammates don't tell me things." Steve said as he noticed me sitting up on the roof. He shook his head before grabbing another log too. "I was kind of hoping Thor would be the exception."

"Yeah, give him time." Tony mumbled. "We don't know what the Maximoff kid showed them."

Steve cut the log in half and reached for another. "Earth's mightiest heroes. Pulled us apart like cotton candy."

"Seems like you and Grace walked away alright." Tony stated. Steve glanced at him. 

"That's where you're wrong. Grace didn't walk away alright. I don't know what the Maximoff kid showed her but it's shook her to the core and that never happens. It that a problem?" Steve told him. Tony flinched back slightly at the anger in Steve's voice.

"I don't trust a guy without a dark side." Tony answered back, thankfully taking me out of the conversation. I don't want people to know about anything that I did. Especially Tony. As people say, the more they know, the more they ask. "Call me old-fashioned."

"Well, let's just say you haven't seen it yet." Steve told him as I shifted a little, removing a rock from under my bottom.

"You know Ultron is trying to tear us apart, right?" Tony reminded him.

"Well, I guess you'd know. Whether you'd tell us is a bit of a question." Steve replied, swinging the axe down on the log.

"Banner and I were doing research." Tony reminded him.

"That would affect the team."

"That would end the team!" Tony snapped. "Isn't that the mission? Isn't that the 'why' we fight? So, we can end the fight. So we get to go home." Steve reached down and picked up another log as Tony spoke before ripping it in half with his bare hands.

"Every time someone tries to win a war before it starts, innocent people die. Every time." Steve mentioned to him before Laura walked up.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Stark. Clint said you wouldn't mind but our tractor doesn't seem to want to start at all. I thought maybe you might..." She trailed off as Tony glanced at her. 

"Yeah, I'll give her a kick. Don't take from my pile." He told Steve before walking away, even though Steve's pile was so much bigger than his. Steve then turned to glance up at me from where he was standing. 

"You gonna come down and help?" He asked. I shook my head as I tightened my arms around my knees. "Well, you gonna come down at all?"

Before I could answer, Lila came running out from I guess is the porch, her looking up. "Auntie Grace, color with me!" She was able to pull a small smile out of me before I started to slide down. Slipping back through the bedroom window, Lila waited for me at the bottom of the stairs.

She bounced around for a bit while we all ate dinner before I ruffled her hair, going to sit down by Nat at the table while she continued to color in the living room. 

"Ultron took you folks out of play to buy himself time." Fury said as I saw Lila running towards Nat and I. She gave Nat a picture before running back to color more. "My contacts all say he's building something. The amount of vibranium he made off with, I don't think it's just one thing."

"What about Ultron himself?" Steve asks, leaning against the entrance wall to the dining room.

"Oh, he's easy to track. He's everywhere. The guy is multiplying faster than a Catholic rabbit. It still doesn't help us get an angle on any of his plans, though." Fury explained.

"Is he still going after launch codes?" Tony asked, throwing a dart.

"Yes, he is but he's not any headway." Fury replied, glancing at him. 

"I cracked the Pentagon's firewall in high school on a dare." Tony admitted in amusement. 

"Well, I contacted our friends at the Nexus about that." Fury added on.

I frowned but before I could speak, Steve did. "Nexus?"

"It's the World Internet hub in Oslo. Every bite of data flows through there. Fastest access on Earth." Bruce explained from behind me.

"So, what did they say?" Clint asked, eyeing the dart in his hand.

"He's fixated on the missiles. But the codes are constantly being changed." Fury said.

"By whom?" Tony asked before a dart whizzed past his face, hitting the dart board. He glared at Barton who shrugged before Fury answered.

"Parties unknown."

"Do we have an ally?" I asked, taking a sip from a cup in front of me.

"Ultron's got an enemy. That's not the same thing. Still, I'd pay folding money to know who it is." Fury answered.

"I might need to visit Oslo. Find our unknown." Tony suggested. I nodded as I tapped my fingers on the table.

"Well, this is good times, boss, but I was kind of hoping when I saw you, you'd have more than that." Nat said, sighing.

"I do. I have you." Fury replied, gesturing to all of us. "Back in the day, I had eyes everywhere. Ears, everywhere else. You kids had all the tech you could dream up. Here we all are, back on Earth, with nothing but our wit and our will to save the world. Ultron says the Avengers are the only thing between hi and his mission. And whether or not he admits, his mission is global destruction. All this, laid in a grave. So, stand. Outwit the platinum bastard." 

"Watch out, Steve doesn't like that kind of talk." I joked as Steve's head snapped over to me. 

"You know what, Grace?" I smirked at his reaction. 

"So, what does he want?" Fury asked again.

"To become better. Better than us. He keeps building bodies." Steve said, crossing his arms.

"Person bodies. The human form is inefficient. Biologically speaking, we're outmoded but he keeps coming back to it." Tony explained as he moved from the dart board and into the room.

"When you two programmed him to protect the human race, you amazingly failed." Nat reminded the two.

"They don't need to be protected. They need to evolve. Ultron's going to evolve." Bruce said, staring at the butterfly that Lila drew on the table.

"How?" Fury asked him.

"Has anyone been in contact with Helen Cho?"


	22. The Aventure

Dropping Steve off near the building, Clint raised the Quinjet back up. "Two minutes. Stay close."

I glanced out the window as I held onto the two seat that Clint and Nat occupied before hearing Dr. Cho saying something about the cradle through Steve's comm. 

"I got a private jet taking off across town. No manifest." Nat stated. "That could be him."

No, he wouldn't be that obvious. "There." I pointed out a truck. "It's a truck from the lab. Right above you, Cap. On the loop by the bridge. It's them. You got three with the Cradle, one in the cab."

"I could take out the driver." Clint said, aiming at the driver.

"Negative. That truck crashes, the gem could level the city. We need to draw out Ultron." Steve explained. From above him, he jumped down off the loop and onto the top of the truck. He moved around towards the back before a blast jerked the door open.

He kicked back before another blast knocked the door almost off, him landing on it. "Well, he's definitely unhappy. I'm gonna try and keep him that way."

"You're not a match for him, Cap." Clint said as I moved around the cabin of the jet.

"Thanks, Barton."

Nat glanced back at me as I walked up to two of the bikes we had in the jet. Sliding my leg over one, I turned to Nat. "Lower the ramp."

She lowered it and I reversed out then gunned it to avoid being hit by traffic. Seeing the truck up ahead, I noticed something hitting the road from where I was. Getting closer, I noticed that it was his shield in the road. "Always picking up after you, Steve."

Leaning down, I snatched it before trying to catch up. "They're heading under the overpass. I've got no shot." Clint said in my ear as I sped up.

"Which way?" I asked.

"Hard right. Now." He ordered. I cut off the car next to me and went down the smaller road, speeding up. Noticing the truck, I leaned as I slid under it before driving next to it. Steve glanced down from being held up by Ultron before I threw up his shield, him catching it. 

Ultron hit the top of the truck and noticed that I was driving next to them. I swerved back under the truck to the other side and that's when I noticed Nat breaking hard before she hit the big piece of road that Ultron lifted up.

Driving faster, I tried to avoid the flying cars behind me as Steve jumped back up onto the truck. Suddenly, Clint was in front of us, shooting at Ultron before the guards came out from the back of the truck. Steve threw Ultron but he came right back, knocking them both into a train. Speeding up, I made a leap for it and managed to grab onto a handle through the opening before pulling myself inside.

Grabbing Steve's shield, I threw it at Ultron as he stood up but he just blocked it with his arm. Flying at me, I jumped over him where Steve was getting up from the floor. As I turned back to him, he blasts me, sending me back into Steve.

"I'm going in. Cap, can you keep him occupied?" Nat asked through the comms.

Steve panted as I got off him and answered. "What do you think I've been doing?"

He got up, grabbing his shield before running at Ultron again. Turning to the civilians, I stayed to ordered them. "Stay back, stay back."

Ultron had Steve pinned against the side of the train when I turned back around and when I went to help, a blue blur appeared, knocking Ultron back away from Steve. Glancing up as Steve hit the floor by my feet, I saw Pietro then turned as I noticed Wanda behind me, guarding her brother with grates.

Ultron whipped around. "Please, don't do this."

"What choice do we have?" She replied back. He shot out the front window before exiting through a side door.

"I lost him!" Steve yelled, yanking himself up. "He's headed your way!"

Feeling the train hit something, I turned to Wanda and Pietro as they both stared at me. "There's civilians in our path." Pietro nodded before disappearing as I glanced at Wanda. "Can you stop this thing?"

Before I could turn back to the people, something hit me in the back and throwing me onto the floor. Glancing up, I saw Steve before I noticed Wanda doing what I asked of her. "Do you always have to hit me?"

Steve helped me up as Wanda quickly rushed outside as she finally stopped the train. We both walked out as well to see Pietro sitting down with Wanda's help. "I just need a minute."

"I'm very tempted not to give you one." Steve said as Wanda turned to us, keeping her hand on her brother's shoulder.

"The Cradle. Did you get it?" She asked.

"Stark will take care of it." Steve answered. She barely shook her head as she glanced from me to Steve.

"No, he won't."

"You don't know what you're talking about. Stark's not crazy." Steve told her.

"He will do anything to make things right." Wanda replied, a plea hidden in her voice.

"Steve..." I trailed off before he sighed, turning away for a second.

"Stark, come in. Stark. Anyone on comms." Steve spoke, a hand to his ear.

"Ultron can't tell the difference between saving the world and destroying it. Where do you think he gets that?" Wanda stated. Steve whipped around to me, his jaw tightening.

"She's right, Steve. We can't let Stark finish that Cradle. God knows what he'll conjure up." I added on causing his jaw to harden in frustration. 

"Fine."

* * *

Running into the Tower, we all raced up to try to get there in time before Stark started to play with the Cradle. Getting to the lab, I saw Banner leaning over the Cradle. "The genetic coding tower is at 97%. You have got to upload that schematic in the next three minutes."

"I'm only going to say this once." Steve said, making our presence known to the two.

"How about none-ce?" Tony joked from his spot.

"Shut it down." Steve ordered.

"Nope, not gonna happen." Tony said. I rolled my eyes at his stubbornness.

"You don't know what you're going." I spoke up, catching their attention.

"And you do?" Bruce asked me, gesturing towards my head. "She's not in your head again?"

"I know you're angry." Wanda stated as she walked out from behind me.

"Oh, we're way past that." Bruce told her. "I could choke the life out of you and never change a shade." I grabbed the girl's wrist and moved her back towards me to not anger Bruce any further.

"Banner, after everything that's happen..." Steve started to say.

"It's nothing compared to what's coming!" Tony interrupted.

"You don't know what's in there." Wanda added on, her hand gripping one of my hip straps.

"This isn't a game!" Steve argued before I noticed a blue blur going around the room and around the cradle.

Pietro stopped, throwing down a tube. "No, no. Go on. You were saying?" A gunshot filled the air before Pietro dropped through the glass floor.

"Pietro!" Wanda screamed but I held her back, knowing Clint was down on that level.

"I'm rerouting the upload." Tony said. Steve threw his shield, knocking into the generators causing them to spark. Tony called an iron fist and blasted Steve back while Bruce grabbed Wanda from behind as Tony stared at me. Noticing a gun cocking, I turned to Clint.

"What would you say to your daughter when she asks about me?" I reminded him of just last night when his daughter wouldn't let me leave the house. Like wrap around my leg, wouldn't leave. He lowered his gun before Thor slid into the room.

He jumped onto the Cradle before calling the lightning, slamming it down onto the Cradle. He withdrew the lightning before the Cradle exploded. I covered my face before turning back to see a man kneeling. He slowly stood before flying at Thor.

Thor pushed him away and the man shattered through the glass before pausing at the windows. He just floated as we all got down onto the same level with him, waiting for what he was going to do next. The man made a green suit appear on him before he floated down near Thor.

"I am sorry." It spoke. "That was odd. Thank you." The man then created a cap just like Thor.

"Thor. You helped create this?" Steve asked, gesturing towards the thing.

"I've had a vision. A whirlpool that sucks in all hope of life and at its center is that." He pointed at the gem on the man's forehead.

"What? The gem?" Bruce asked, walking closer.

"It's the Mind Stone. It's one of six Infinity Stones. The greatest power in the universe, unparalleled in its destructive capabilities." Thor explained.

"Then why would you bring..."

"Stark is right." Thor interrupted Steve. "The Avengers cannot defeat Ultron."

"Not alone." The man spoke.

"Why does your Vision sound like Jarvis?" I asked causing the man to move closer to him. I took a step back away from him.

"We reconfigured Jarvis' matrix to create something new." Stark explained as it moved past me.

"I think I've had my fill of new." Steve complained as I moved over to him, away from the thing.

"You think I'm a child of Ultron." It spoke again, noticing that I was moving away from him.

"You're not?" Steve questioned it as I crossed my arms. 

"I'm not Ultron. I am not Jarvis. I am...I am." It trailed off, probably not knowing who it was.

"I looked in your head and saw annihilation." Wanda stated, stepping up to the man.

"Look again." He told her.

Barton scoffs from beside me. "Her seal of approval means jack to me."

"Their powers, the horrors in our head, Ultron himself, they all came from the Mind Stone. And they're nothing compared to what it can unleashed. But with it on our side..."

"Is it? Are you? On our side?" Steve interrupted, questioning it.

"I don't think it's that simple." It started to say.

"Well, it better get real simple real soon." Barton threatened it.

"I am on the side of life. Ultron isn't. He will end it all." The man explained. 

"What's he waiting for?" Stark asked. 

"You." The man answered. I frowned in confusion.

"Where?" Bruce asked, also confused.

"Sokovia. He's got Nat there too." Clint butted in.

"If we're wrong about you, if you're the monster that Ultron made you to be..." Bruce trailed off.

"What will you do?" It asked. The silence was deafening but he got the answer. "I don't want to kill Ultron. He's unique and he's in pain. But that pain will roll over the Earth. So, he must be destroyed. Every form he's built, every trace of his presence on the net. We have to act now. And not one of us can do it without the other. Maybe I am a monster. I don't think I'd know if I were one. I'm not what you are and not what you intended. So, there may be no way to make you trust me but we need to go." My eyes widened as he picked up the hammer and held it out to Thor like it was nothing.

Oh wow. Yeah, um...wow. Didn't expect that.

Thor took it in shock before the man walked away. "Right. Well done." He patted Stark on the shoulder before following.

"Three minutes. Get what you need." Steve ordered.

I quickly dashed to my room and grabbed as many knives, electric charges, anything I could carry before dashing back out. I jerked to a stop when I almost ran into the man. I'm just gonna call him Vision, it's easier. I followed him as I heard Stark talking. "If even one tin soldier is left standing, we've lost. There's gonna be blood on the floor."

"Steve and I have no plans for tomorrow night." I said as I got closer.

"I get first crack at the big guy. Iron Man's the one he's waiting for." Stark said. 

"That's true. He hates you the most." I chuckled as I followed Vision into the jet before everyone else followed. I leaned forward, grabbing one of the comms.

"Time for a little adventure."


	23. The Beauty of The Rock

"Ultron knows we're coming. Odds are we'll be riding into heavy fire. And that's what we signed up for but the people of Sokovia, they didn't. So, our priority is getting them out. All they want is to live their lives in peace. And that's not gonna happen today. But we can do our best to protect them. And we can get the job done. We find out what Ultron's been building, we find Romanoff, and we clear the field. Keep the fight between us. Ultron thinks we're monsters. That we're what's wrong with the world. This isn't just about beating him. It's about whether he's right."

Oh, how I always love Steve's awfully long speeches. Glancing over at Wanda, the red wisps coming out of her hands went on for miles. "You're doing great, Wanda. Keep it up. They're coming to us."

She gave me a small nod and scrunched her face, pushing out the wisps harder, farther, deeper into the city. Noticing Clint in the building not far, I turned back to Wanda. "Keep it going. Clint's not far, he's watching."

She gave another small nod before I jogged deeper into the city, moving people along to the metal bridge where Steve was. Urging more people to cross, the sounds of car horns filled the air. Give it time people, you'll get across.

Hearing explosions and people screaming, I glanced around and saw Ultron's Iron Legion flying down. Fucking great. "Go! Come on, quickly!"

"Grace!" Steve's voice hollered over to me as I heard a car crunching behind me. Hearing the sound of a blaster fueling up, I ducked behind one abandon car on the bridge. Peeking up, I fired an electric bullet at its main power source and it spasmed before dropping.

Glancing up, I saw one sneaking up on Steve so I fired another electric bullet and watched as that one spasmed out before dropping. Steve jerked his head over to me, giving me a smile before slamming one of the bots onto a car, ripping an arm off.

The ground cracking under my feet had my head snapping down. A few feet from where I was standing, the bridge was cracking and breaking apart as the earth beneath our feet started to rise. Moving closer to the edge, Steve grabbed my wrist as we both looked down as the cars from the other half of the broken bridge fell.

"Do you see the beauty of it?" Snapping around, Ultron bots stood before us, Ultron speaking through them. "The inevitability. You rise, only to fall. You, Avengers, you are my meteor. My swift and terrible sword. And the earth will crack with the weight of your failure. Purge me from your computers, turn my own flesh against me. It means nothing. When the dust settles, the only thing living in this world will be metal."

Shooting the few that started to come towards us before Steve was flying through the air by a bot. They chucked him down on a car windshield and I ran after him as Tony started to speak. "Cap, Grace, you got incoming."

"Incoming already came in." Steve grunted as I pulled him off the car. "Stark, you worry about bringing the city back down safely. The rest of us have one job, tear these things apart. You get hurt, hurt them back. You get killed, walk it off."

"Always very sentimental." I joked. He glared at me before throwing his shield past my head, it bounced off a few bots that I guess were getting a little too close to comfort for him. My hair settled as he caught the shield. "Asshole."

He smirked before he ran off to find more bots to destroy which wasn't hard cause they were coming at us like little toddlers when you have candy. Sliding down onto my side, I side swept one of the bots, stabbing a knife into its head. The light flickered off and I glanced up, I withdrew three more and threw them.

They landed on their respective targets and I snatched them once I heard yelping coming from one of the cars on the bridge. Steve appeared next to me and he quickly grabbed onto the bumper of the car as it started to go over. But the bumper snapped off, the car free falling into the sky. "Oh, god!"

Steve turned and whacked one of the bots with the bumper, sending it flying to the metal bridge while I watched as Thor decided to thrust the woman back up into the air and at us. Steve grabbed onto a pipe and grabbed ahold of the woman's hand. "Grace!"

Reaching out, he shoved the woman upwards; her hand grasping mine. Pulling her up, her other arm went around my neck, gripping for dear life. Hearing a bot behind us, "You can't save them all." A shield came up and smashed into its chest as I got the woman to her feet.

"You'll never..." The bot continued to say before Steve pulled his shield back with the magnets on his arm, chucking the bot over the bridge.

"Never' what? You didn't finish!" He yelled after it when a car dropped down behind us. Thor landed before jumping off. "What, were you napping?"

Running after them, I flipped over some blasts before throwing some knives at ones ahead of me. Suddenly, one of the bots got hit with the shield, slamming into a car. I snatched the shield as one tried to blast me.

"Alright, we're all clear here." Clint said into the comm. Steve noticed I had his shield and was taking heavy fire, so he ran up on the bot before snapping its head off. Yanking his shield from my hands, he threw it so it pushed another bot back.

"We are not clear! We are very not clear!" He ran at the bot he just pushed back, shoving the shield into his chest. He jumped up and planked in midair, kicking the shield causing the bot's head to snap off as I threw a knife at one coming at him.

Grabbing the shield off the ground, I threw it at a few bot to push them back as Clint answered back. "Alright, coming to you."

"Keep up, old man!" I heard Pietro's voice echoing into Clint's comm. Ducking under the bot, I jabbed a knife into a wire causing oil to leak out of it. Pushing it deeper, oil splattered on my face before I retched up the knife, taking out half the wiring in the bot. 

"Nobody would know. Nobody. The last I saw him an Ultron was sitting on him. Yeah, he'll be missed, that quick little bastard." I laughed as I heard Clint's complaining before slicing a bot's head clean off. "I miss him already."

Glancing around, I saw no more bots near me but a lot of people were hiding behind cars and buses, pretty much any place they could hid. A baby cried as I ran towards them. "Come, the next wave is gonna hit any minute. You can't be in the line of fire."

Urging them to follow me, Steve led a few more with my group as dust filled the air. He observed my face before reaching up to smear the drying oil on my face. "You got... nevermind. What do you got, Stark?"

I led the woman with the baby forward as Stark answered. "Huh? Nothing great. Maybe a way to blow up the city. That'll keep it from impacting the surface if you guys can get clear."

"I asked for a solution, not an escape plan." Steve said as the last of the group got to a place that was somewhat more safer than the open streets.

"Impact radius is getting bigger every second. We're gonna have to make a choice." Stark explained. Nat glanced at us as we got to the edge of the rock where she was.

"Cap, these people are going nowhere. If Stark finds a way to blow this rock..." She trailed off.

"Not til everyone's safe. There's children here." I reminded her of the tiny lives that haven't lived yet.

"Everyone up here versus everyone down there? There's no math there." Nat tried to convince the two of us. 

"I'm not leaving this rock with one civilian on it." Steve quickly stated, agreeing with me. 

"I didn't say we should leave. There's worse ways to go." She paused and I noticed her looking out towards the sky and I did the same. We were in the clouds, that's why it was getting a little difficult to breathe. "Where else am I gonna get a view like this?"

"Glad you like the view, Romanoff." Hearing Fury's voice, I frowned. "It's about to get better."

Gasping, I noticed an old Helicarrier floating up beside the rock. "Nice, right? Pulled her out of the mothballs with a couple of old friends. She's dusty but she'll do." Fury said.

"Fury, you son of a bitch." Steve cursed and I gasped in fake surprise.

"Ohh! You kiss your mother with that mouth?" Fury joked. Flaps on the carrier opened and I saw many lifeboats leaving. Then Pietro appeared next to me.

"This is S.H.I.E.L.D.?" He asked, amused as more lifeboats emerged out of the Helicarrier.

"This is what S.H.I.E.L.D. is supposed to be." I answered. Pietro glanced at me before going back to the lifeboats.

"This is not so bad."

"Let's load them up." Steve ordered. A lifeboat floated down near the destroyed bridge and the doors lifted as Steve urged people from buildings.

"Come on, little lady." I said after running over to a little girl who was falling behind in her cute little nightdress. Snatching her up, I handed her off to a woman as I urged more to come aboard. "Keep coming, keep coming."

"Avengers, time to work for a living." Stark's voice echoed through my comm before I looked at the loading guy.

"There's still a few more. Make sure they get on." I patted the guy on the back before running for the core. Seeing a hole in the destroyed church, I jumped through it, stabbing a knife into a bot's head.

"Romanoff? You and Banner better not be playing 'hide the zucchini?" Stark stated and I stared at him confused.

"Relax, shell head. Not all of us can fly." She replied before a truck pulled up and she got out. "What's the drill?"

"This is the drill." Stark pointed at the thing in the center of us. "If Ultron gets a hand on the core, we lose."

As if his name was a beacon, Ultron floated down a little so we all could see him. "Is that the best you can do?" Thor hollered at him.

Ultron raised his arm and suddenly, it looked like hundreds came charging before stopping under Ultron. I turned my head and glared at Thor. "You had to ask."

"This is the best I can do. This is exactly what I wanted. All of you against all of me. How can you possibly hope to stop me?" Ultron asked, quite proud of himself if you say the least.

"Well, like the old man said...together." Stark repeated before the Hulk roared signaling for them to come.

They came charging once again as we created a protective circle around the core. Keeping the gun in one hand and a knife in the other, I did the best I could with the one in front of me. One got a little too close and before I could shot it, red wisps tore it apart.

Thanks, Wanda.

Shooting another and throwing a knife, the wisps carried the knife into another bot as I threw another that was on Steve, its hands around his neck. The knife struck the head and he ripped it out before throwing at one ahead of him.

Two came at me at once as I shot one, jamming my knife into the other's belly. Grabbing a hold of all the wires I could, I ripped them out before chucking the knife at another. Arms wrapped around my neck for a brief second before a blue blur ripped it from my back and into the church wall. Then suddenly, they all went running like scared mice.

"They'll try to leave the city." Thor stated as he watched them.

"We can't let them, not even one. Rhodey." Stark said, calling for him.

"I'm on it." Rhodey replied. Shooting a few that were flying away, they went down before turning to Steve.

"We gotta move out. Even I can tell the air is getting thin. You guys get to the boats. I'll sweep for stragglers. Be right behind you." Steve ordered.

"I'll protect it. It's my job." Wanda stated. Instead of following Nat and Clint, I went in the opposite direction of Steve to search for anyone still not on the lifeboats. Not seeing any, I ran for the lifeboat that was closest to me, seeing Clint running out from it. 

Seeing where he was running towards, I ran over to the little boy and pulled him out from where he fell. Passing him off to Clint, who appeared next to me, I made sure to look around the area for anyone else. Hearing gunfire, I glanced up and saw bullets hitting the ground in front of me, my eyes widening.

"Grace!"


	24. The Voices

_"There was intensive damage."_

_"Will she make it?"_

_"Her heart was completely shredded. Both her lungs collapsed in surgery. She stopped breathing, no oxygen to the brain for a good three minutes."_

_"Will she wake up?"_

_"We don't know what kind of damage the brain took from the lack of oxygen and with the damage to her body, there is a very slim chance she'll wake up. I'm so sorry, Captain Rogers."_

_"Well, can't you do what you did for Clint? Rebuild the tissue?"_

_"If she survives the next few days, we will try on the wound we made to her chest during surgery but her other wounds, they are too jagged and too complex for the regeneration to do."_

_"So, they have to heal on their own? The bullet wounds?"_

_"Yes. We aren't concerned about them healing, we're more concerned about infection. An infection can kill faster than a bullet, but Grace is strong. Ultron will not be the one to take her down, I won't let that happen."_

_"You can't leave. Not after all that you've been through, you can't leave. You gotta come back, Grace. I need you. Sam needs you, Nat, Wanda, the team. Bucky needs you. You're his other half, we haven't found him yet. If you leave, what am I gonna tell him? I can't do that, so you gotta come back. You hear me? Come back...please."_

_"No, no, Lila. You can't climb up there."_

_"I just wanna give her booboos kisses. You always make mine better, I thought I could help with my kisses."_

_"I know, baby. Why don't you give her some air kisses? I know she'll love those."_

_"I love you, Auntie Grace."_

_"We still haven't found any leads on Bucky. I don't know what it was about you working on this with me but you always found them so much better. What am I doing wrong? Hmmm, if I could just have your password to your computer, I know you have something on there for me to use but your computer is uncrackable. Even Stark can't get into it. I mean, you know Bucky. You know his ways. I can't ask Steve cause he doesn't know either and he's too focused on you and the recruits to even ask. You gotta come back, Grace. I can't find him without you."_

_"Your hair has gotten so long. Sometimes the nurses forget to take care of it but that's why I'm here. Wanda said she'll be here in a little bit. Maybe she can tell us something about what's going on in that brain of yours. It's been a month since... maybe she can give you some good dreams. Maybe that will help you get better. Tony's visited, doubt he said anything. He blames himself for this. That he didn't stop Ultron when he could. He sends you a lot of flowers. Mostly Juliet Roses, the most expensive flower in the world. Steve and I are training the new recruits, wish we had you to whip them into shape. That reminds me, I gotta go do that. I'll be back tomorrow."_

_"Hi. Nat said that I should come and see if I can help. I know I've been in your head so many and I know I've caused you pain; that you hate me because of it. Hopefully I can make it up to you. What would you like to dream about? I don't know why I'm asking when you can't even answer. I don't know if you wanna dream about your Bucky or flowers and rainbows. I'll just let your mind choose."_


	25. The Reruns of Strawberry Love

"Strip and shower." A guard threw a towel at me and I caught it before it dropped to the ground. He slammed the door shut and I stripped out of the uniform and laid it on the bench. 

Slamming a hand on the knob, cold water fell down onto my head. Rubbing my hands together, red water dripped down to my toes as I scrubbed the dried blood off them. Once they were clean, I wiped my face; feeling the dried blood there. My eyes fluttered closed and all I saw that was the target's eyes staring at me. How fearful they were as he watched the blood drip of my knife. 

_Giggling came screeching out of my mouth as a hand tightened around mine. The smell of fresh strawberries filled my nose along with something sweet. The hand squeezed mine again as it continued to drag me along._

_"Come on, Gracie."_

"Gracie?" I whispered as my eyes opened. My ear twitched as I felt something shift in the air. 

Whipping around, I ducked under the fist that was swinging at my head. Swatting away the other one, I punched the bare stomach before sliding under his legs before kicking him forward. He whipped around and swung his flesh arm and I sidestepped before the metal hand wrapped around my throat, slamming me into the tiles behind me. 

Water beated down on us as he held me there, staring. The hand around my throat tightened slightly, flexing around the muscle. Staring into his icy blue eyes, his thumb smoothed over the back edge of my jaw before the door jerked open. 

"Soldat, step back." One of his handlers ordered. He cocked his head at the sound of the order but hesisted, his metal hand flexing again. "Soldat, I said-,"

Before the order finished, he stepped back and just stared. Another walked into the room before speaking. " Красного, step away and to the machine."

Stepping away, the towel was shoved into my chest as I walked out of the room. Barely glancing back, one of my handlers followed me with a hand close to his gun. His other hand came down on the middle of my back...

_The feeling of an arm around me, little legs around someone's waist. Me swaying slightly back and forth as my eyes got heavy. A voice softing singing reaching into the depths of sleep. "Gonna be filled with strawberry love. Baby, don't you blue. Gonna make a pie and hold you forever in the middle of my heart. My sweet little Gracie."_

Twisting around, I snatched the gun from his belt and fired two shots into his chest. Then I paused. My eyes flickered to the gun in my hand to the dead handler on the ground. 

"Красного," My eyes snapped up and so did my hand. Another handler stood there, his eyes flickering from the dead body at my feet then back to me. Feeling blood touch the tip of my toes, I took a step back. "Put down the gun, Красного."

Lowering the gun like I was ordered, the handler stepped forward and ripped the gun from my hands. Him grabbing my bare shoulder, he twisted me around and led me to the machine. Adding pressure to my shoulder, he slammed me back into the seat while the Soldat stood in the far corner, staring at me. 

"Mission report." The one they call Pierce strut into the room before staring me down. My head cocked as the thought back to Jacob, no....the target. "Mission report, now."

"The boy lived." I replied before my head was snapped to the side, my cheek stinging. A scoff and a half growl filled the room a second after the backhand. My jaw tightened as I turned my head back to Pierce. 

"So the boy lives. Rumlow." He spoke, turning back to stare at one of the handlers near the Soldat. 

"Already taken care of."

Pierce slowly slid his head back in my direction before placing his hands on his hips. "Start over, wipe her."

My lips pursed as a hand was placed on my bare shoulder, shoving me backwards. Metal cuffs came around my wrists and my upper arms as two metal plates came down over my right cheek and my left eye. My body tensed up, waiting for what was gonna happen; my breath quickening. 

Then the worst pain imaginable ripped through my brain as my screams echoed around the room.

And everything faded away.


	26. The Reruns of The Bugs

"Красного!" The voice had me stopping in my tracks. "I told you to train. You do as you're told." 

Slowly turning, I faced the handler who had marched over to me and away from the Soldat. He had the taser raised, pushed towards me. Slowly moving backwards, he quickly reacted by trying to shove the end into my skin. Leaning to the side, I grabbed the taser and twisted it, shoving it into his skin. 

I held it there until he started to foam at the mouth and sliding to the floor. Once he stopped twitching, I moved the end away from his neck. Throwing the taser to the ground, my feet moved towards the door; hearing another pair of footsteps behind me. 

"Soldat." I whispered, pausing midway down the hallway. His presence behind me was easy to feel. Feeling fingertips graze my hair had my eyes slowly falling shut.

_"My sweet Gracie Marie." A woman smiled down at me as she smoothed her fingers through long locks of hair that rested on the pillow by my head. She twisted it into a braid, a smile still on her face. She tied a ribbon at the bottom before moving to the bed that was beside me. "My buggy Emma Belle. My sweet girls."_

Feeling the fingers graze my shoulder, I reached back and touched the flesh hand that was at his side. His hand flipped over and intertwined his fingers with mine. 

_"Ring-around the rosie, pocket full of posie," The older girl in front of me twirled me around in a circle as she tightened her fingers that she had intertwined with mine. A giggle escaped my lips as she giggled right after. "Ashes, ashes, we all fall down."_

_She tugged me down as she said down, my little body falling on top of her bigger body as she let out a loud laugh. Laying my head down on her chest, her heartbeat pounded in my ears. "Momma, come play with us."_

_"It in a minute, my little bugs."_

The fingers tightened in mine had me reaction. Ripping the arm over my head, I kicked him away as I ripped my fingers out from his. He swung his metal fist before I straighten, it connecting with the side of my face before everything went black.

* * *

Extraction with one execution. 

"Have it done in two."

Rumlow's voice echoed in my head as I watched from the tree. With my back against the tree, I stayed crouched with my gun aimed at the road. 

Watching, waiting for the car to come around the bend and pull into the garage. 

Sooner rather than later, the car came around the bend like clockwork and it pulled into the garage, the door staying up as the woman exited the vehicle. She moved a few steps to the side and opened the backdoor behind the driver's seat, a little girl jumped out as a teenage boy jumped out of the passenger seat. Taking aim at the woman, my finger went to press down when she said something.

"Come on, my little bug. Let's get you to bed." 

_"Come on, my bugs. It's time for bed." The woman with the long brown hair said as she stood in the doorway. The body next to mine jerked around to face her._

_"Please, momma. Two more minutes. Gracie isn't done with your picture." The girl said as I pressed a crayon more into the paper. Lifting it up, I placed it down and grabbed the brown one. Drawing a few strokes, I pulled back and smiled._

_"No, it's bedtime." The woman replied, her heeled feet hitting the hardwood floor as she came around the couch next to us. "She can finish it in the morning. Come."_

_"Momma, I done." I squealed as I held up the paper to her. She smiled brightly and grabbed the paper._

_"Oh, my sweet bug. It's beautiful." She reached down and picked me up so I could look at the picture also. The three figures in the grass while the fourth one floated in the clouds. Momma said daddy was an angel and he floated above us in Heaven. "I love it, my sweet bug."_

My finger slowly raised from the trigger as the woman reached down and picked up the girl. The child wrapped her arms and legs around the woman as she carried her up to the door and into the house.

And moving out of my line of fire. 

Mission failed.


	27. The Reruns of Great Escapes

"We have a containment breach!" A voice echoed around me as I wrapped my hands around a man's head and snapping his neck when an alarm blared in my ear. "I repeat, we have a containment breach!"

Ripping the gun off the man's belt, I fired at the men coming at me; their bodies dropping to the ground as I stepped over them. Then the smell of smoke filled my nose as the alarm blared again. 

Hearing footsteps behind me, I reached my arm back and fired. Not even turning around to face the man as he went down. I just kept moving. 

"We have a containment breach!" The voice echoed down the hall again. "I repeat, we have containment breach! Both Soldat and Красного broke containment."

Soldat. 

He is warm. 

I need warm. 

I was too cold.

I don't like the cold. 

I was too cold.

I need warm.

He is warm.

Soldat.

Turning the corner, heat of the flames hit me causing me to step back. Warm but too warm. Not right. Stepping back and turning, my knees shook as the heat of the flames licked at the back of my neck.

_"Run, baby. Go, I'm right behind you." The woman ordered. She was lying on the floor with something on top of her. I let out a harsh cough as smoke filled my lungs._

_It was too hot, I don't like hot. Reaching down with my little hands, I pulled on her arm. "Momma, come on. It's hot."_

_She patted my hand before reaching up and grasping the necklace around her neck. She pulled it off before reaching up to place it over my head and on my neck. "I know it's hot, baby. Go outside with Emma, momma will be right behind you. Go."_

_"Momma, now!" I cried as tears flowed down my face, another set of coughs racking through my body. I shook her arm as my feet stomped on the floor._

_She reached up and grasped my arm. "Grace Marie," She paused as she let out a series of coughs from the smoke. "Get....out...side now."_

_She shoved me away from her and I fell back on my bottom. I let out a cry before getting up and running towards the open front door. Struggling down the front steps, two arms wrapped around me as I was lifted off them and onto the ground._

_Wrapping my arms around the slightly bigger body, Emma held my head to her chest. She moved further back as the flames got bigger, the heat getting hotter. Her heart pounded in my ear as I heard her sniffs as she moved us further back._

_The sound of creaking caught my attention as the fire roared in the sky. Reaching up, I grasped the necklace as we both watched as the roof caved in, the flames getting higher. The arms around my neck pulled me back so I was looking the girl's face._

_"Gracie, where's momma?"_

_All I could do was point at the burning house, still clenching the necklace around my neck. Her eyes flickered down onto it before pulling me back to her._

_"It's okay, Gracie. Momma's in heaven now."_

Slamming into a chest had me wrapping my arms around their waist. Two arms, one cold and one warm, clenched around my shoulders. His heart pounded in my ear as we both heard footsteps surround us. 

"Momma's in heaven now."

* * *

Left.

Right. 

Straight. 

Up the stairs.

To the left.

Down the hall. 

To the right.

Then up the stairs.

48271.

Sunshine awaits. 

The sunshine beat down on my hair as my toes dug into the grass. I don't know what lead me here, to this place but I feel like I know it. It seems familiar but also doesn't. My head cocked as I stared at the headstone. 

Emma Donovan.

Loving daughter and sister.

02/26/1917-11/07/1929

_A shiver is what woke me from my slumber. My eyes slowly fluttered open as I could feel my legs shaking from the exposure to the cold. The dress I was wearing not doing a thing to keep the warmth in. Snuggling closer to the body next to mine, the arm around me fell from my shoulders to the ground._

_"Emmy?" I whimpered out as I tried to steal warmth from her but she didn't move when I shoved my head closer to her. "Em?"_

_When she didn't respond, I pulled back so I could look at her. She was wearing less clothing then when she was before I fell asleep. Her fingers were almost blue in color as the same of her lips. Reaching up, I pressed my hand to her shoulder and shook her. "Emmy?"_

_Shaking her harder when I didn't get a response. "Emmy?!" Tears started to come to my eyes as my breathing got quicker, it coming out as puffs in front of me. But I didn't see those puffs coming from her. Leaning forward, I pressed my ear to her chest._

_Nothing._

_I heard nothing._

_I let out a whimper as nothing came from her. Snuggling into her lap, I shoved my face into her neck. Now I know why I was cold. She wasn't warm and now I'm cold and alone. Seeing the jacket she had took from a man who had left it on a back of a chair, I grabbed it and moved it over me. Breathing in, I could still smell the sweet smell of strawberries. I sniffed as I pushed my arms through the holes as I stared at her._

_The sound of something breaking broke me out of my glaze and I stood up, and started to back away from her. She's get mad if I don't stay close. I was waiting for her to say 'Gracie, come back' but she didn't._

_I sniffed and rubbed my nose with the sleeve. Emmy in heaven now with momma and daddy. Reaching up, I clenched the necklace around my neck as I moved away from the overpass and away from her._

"Emmy." I whispered as I felt something hit my cheek. Before something else hit my shoulder. Glancing up, I noticed the darkening clouds above me before I started to walk backwards. 

Not paying attention to where I was going, I hit something, falling over it. Landing on my butt, I glanced up to see what I had fallen over. 

Erskine. Abraham, Erskine.

My head cocked as I continued to stare at the name while I stood. Erskine.

_"Gonna be...from heaven above..." I stuttered out as I shook from the cold. Pulling my feet to me, I huddled in a ball in the corner of the alley. "Gonna be...filled with strawberry love. Baby.....don't you cry.."_

_"Dearly?" A voice had me jumping back. Glancing up, I saw a short older man staring down at me. "What are you doing out here in this cold? Where's your momma?"_

_"Momma...." I paused as I tried to remember her face. "She floats with the angels."_

_"What about your papa?" He asked as he crouched down, setting his case on the ground._

_"He didn't wake up like Emmy." I sniffed as a few tears slipped down my cheeks. He reached up and with a finger, swiped them away._

_"Are you alone, my sweet child?" He question to which I nodded. "What's your name, dear?"_

_"Grace Marie Donovan." I whispered out, clenching at the necklace in my hand. He gave me a small smile._

_"My name is Erskine. Abraham Erskine."_

"Красного." My eyes slowly opened as the name echoed out before a clap of thunder filled the air. Rain had soaked me to the core and I felt cold. 

Not right. 

Slowly turning, Rumlow stood near a van with a few others behind him. He started to edge closer as I glared at him for every step he took. "You've been very bad, Красного. Pierce won't be happy with you. It's time to go home."

"Home." My head jerked to the stone that was next to me, my head cocking once more. "Home."

I allowed Rumlow to come up on me and allowed him to cuff my hands behind my back before he started to lead me to the van. "Yeah, home."

* * *

A very painful smack welcomed me as soon as I sat at the machine before another greeted the other cheek. Pierce turned to my handlers as he shoved me back against the seat. "What happened?"

Gomez was the one who answered. "She was supposed to be wiped, sir. Apparently, she killed two of her handlers and a scientist before making an escape out the emergency exit."

"Apparently?" He repeated back. "Not only did she remember the directions to the door and the code but she found her way to his grave. Which she shouldn't have been able to do so. So wipe her and make sure she doesn't remember anything this time."

The doctor that had decided to sit down next to me to stitch up my arm held a scalpel as he cut the cloth off. And as I heard the words 'wipe her', I reacted. 

Snatching the scalpel out his hands, I slit his throat before jumping off the machine. A guard went to grab me but I slice his chest before reaching for Pierce. I swiped my arm and managed to catch a part of his arm and chest before arms wrapped my middle and halling me back. 

Flipping the scalpel, I stabbed the person in the leg before going further up and into their stomach. Jerking from their hold, I kicked them back and swung my arm at another that came at me. The blade sliced up the man's chest and into his neck as multiple men guided Pierce out. 

"Make sure you get rid of her. Don't want her to reappear again." His voice echoed as the guards slammed the door closed, leaving me with three guards. 

"Come on, Красного. Let's play nice." One joked. My head cocked as I stared at him, seeing another guard coming up next to me. 

Flipping the knife, I grabbed it with my other hand and slammed it into the man's neck, Ripping it out, his blood gushed out onto my face as the other two came at me at once. Sliding under the first's arms, I sliced his leg before stabbing the other in the stomach as I slid; both letting out a groan. 

Quickly getting up, I charged one and climbed up him; slamming the scalpel repeatedly into his throat before throwing it full force at the only one left as he ran at me. It lodged in his neck and I slid off the other one as he fell to the ground and ripped the scalpel out; blood sputtering out of the hole. Once the body hit the ground, I turned and face the door before a mist started to fill the room. Inhaling as it did, my body dropped as my mind went blank.

* * *

My eyes snapped opened as I jerked away, jerking at the binds that held me. Rumlow's eyes snapped over to me as he heard me yanking at the bindings. Staring at him as he walked over, he leaned down and got close to my face. 

"You've been a bad kitty, Красного. I've been wanting to do this for a long time. Hydra doesn't need you anyone." He pulled back before speaking to Gomez. "We're gonna do a full cleanse. Leave her in that abandon facility we found in Budapest. No one should find her there, well maybe her bones."

"What about the Soldat? He's notice she's missing." Gomez asked causing me to jerk at the retrains. 

"He'll do fine. Why have a partner if she won't complete missions?" Rumlow said, smirking. He picked up a faded black book with a red star in the middle. "Let's get this over with," He moved back over to me as he opened the book. "You ready, little kitty? Oh, wait, you won't remember any of this in a few minutes so it won't matter what you say."

"Round and round the elephant hole. Deep in the forest you will go. Hidden deep, you will stay...forever and always Hydra." 


	28. The Lack of Oxygen Did Wonders

_"I remember the first time I saw you. You looked like an angel coming out of that truck. It was like God decided to send you down to us. I never thought...I want you wake up. I want you find me. Make me remember. Come find me._

An alarm blared in my ears as my eyes twitched as they tried to open. Come on, open. Open. OPEN! They slowly opened and my eyes flickered around the room, taking note of the red light flashing. Feet hitting the floor caught my attention before they came to an abrupt stop. I took in Steve's face as he stood there, in shock with tears in his eyes. "Grace?"

_I want you to wake up. I want you to find me. Make me remember. Come find me._

"St...Steve."

"How are you feeling today, Grace?" A nursed asked as she walked into my room. I glared at her from where I was leaning against my pillow.

"I want to go home."

"You're not strong enou-,"

"I want to go home!" I interrupted her, repeating what I wanted. Nobody was listening to me. I just want to be in my own bed, in my own room with my own things so I could deal with what happened both outside and inside my head. She huffed before walking out of the room. When she came back, she had Dr. Cho with her. 

"Grace..." Dr. Cho started.

"Will you let me go home?" I asked her, hoping she'll let me. 

"No. Wait, no talking." She told me as she saw I was about to interrupt her. "You had several bullets rip through your body. One of which completely shredded your heart. Your lungs collapsed and you stopped breathing for three minutes. I'm genuinely surprised that you don't have any brain damage from lack of oxygen. You can't go home because your heart isn't ready. You just got out of the ICU yesterday, you're not going home until I say. And I'm saying no."

I don't have brain damage but lack of oxygen did do something, whether I liked or wanted to remember it or not. 

I rolled my eyes in annoyance. "Then what do I have to do?" I asked, crossing my arms causing them to press on still healing wounds. Thank god they regenerated tissue for the surgery wound because that would have been ugly. She said it still might scar but not as badly. 

"Well for one, you're going to be in that bed for another day or two. Then, heart therapy, then stress test, and maybe if I think you're ready, you can get yourself ready to get back into the field." 

I huffed before uncrossing my arms, giving up.

"Fine but I want things from my room if I'm gonna stay."


End file.
